Harry Potter and the Forgotten Secrets
by authoramandamarie
Summary: Harry, Ron, and Hermione have finished school at Hogwarts. They all have already started their afterschool training, except Dumbledore has sent them to Muggle College! Will they make it? RATING RECENTLY CHANGED!
1. Default Chapter

Okay, this is just an idea I had. The college in this story is the one I'm attending. I am using it because I know about it. However, none of the names are the same as the real people on campus, but the personalities will probably be similar to those I know. I started writing it in third person, but feel it might be better in first. This particular chapter is in Harry's POV. Anyway, if it goes over well, I'll put up more chapters, I just want to see how you all like the idea.

So, on with the story:

Harry's POV

We stared wide-eyed at the buildings in front of us. It wasn't as large as Hogwarts, but still intimidating. Older people walked passed us, pushing carts full of boxes and luggage. I sighed. "Well, I guess this is it. Should we get our books or go find our rooms?" Hermione and Ron looked between each other.

"Let's go check in and find our rooms. We'll get our books later," Hermione said. Ron and I nodded and we walked towards the front, sliding glass door. Others ahead of us checked off their names and keys were handed out. Hermione stepped up to the table. "Hermione Granger. And this is Harry Potter and Ron Weasley," she said to the boy with the clipboard.

He nodded, making marks on his paper. "Okay, Ms. Granger, you'll be in 118B. It's the first floor up the stairs, inside section over-looking the courtyard. If you go across the courtyard and through that door, go to your left, stay with the inside hall and you'll find your room." Hermione took her key from him and stepped back for me and Ron to get ours. "Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, you're in room 118A. It's the same area as Ms. Granger, just on the outside hallway." We were given our keys and I turned to Ron and Hermione.

"Well, that was fun," Ron said, wrapping his key around his wrist. "Let's go find those rooms, eh?" Hermione and I nodded and the three of us headed out the door into the square courtyard. "Look at this," Ron said, pointing to a stone wall with funny looking half-moon pieces screwed in in various places just outside the door. "What is that for?"

Hermione sighed. "Ron, don't you watch muggle TV?" she asked. Ron chuckled. "Oh, right, you didn't have a TV. It's a rock climbing wall, Ron. Not that either of you would care about that." She huffed and headed across the court yard and up the stairs. Ron and I grinned at each other and hurried to catch up.

"Well," Hermione said, stopping at room 118B. "Here's mine, let's see if my roommate is here." She slipped the key into the lock and turned the knob. The door opened to reveal two small beds, two closets, two desks, and two wall shelving units. One side of the room was vacant, the other side had blankets, a muggle TV, and a lamp, and the open closet door revealed a full wardrobe. "Looks like I have a roommate, she's just not here right now." She sighed and turned back for the hall. "Okay, let's go find your room."

We headed back to the corner of the hall. "Hey, what room are you looking for?" somebody said behind us. We all turned to face a young man. "Hi. Didn't mean to startle you. I'm Mike, I'm the RA. This is my room right here." I followed his gaze to the door down the hall from Hermione's room. "What room are you looking for?"

Hermione smiled at him. What was this? I rolled my eyes, realizing she was about to start flirting with him. "Well, I found my room," she said, grinning even bigger. Oh come on, Hermione. "Just looking for theirs. Uh....118A?"

Mike nodded, motioning for us to follow. He rounded the corner and tapped at the names on the wall beside the first door. "Right here. Harry and Ron?" We nodded at him and he nodded back. "Okay, there you go. If either of you need anything, don't hesitate to come. I'll be by sometime tonight to have you sign some papers." The three of us looked at each other.

"Well, let's go in," Ron said, sliding the key into the lock. "It seems so pointless to have a key when we could just use our –"

Hermione gave Ron a swift swipe against his arm and he jumped. "Watch it Ron. Remember, we know nothing of magic. We graduated from prep school in England. Right?" Hermione said sternly. Ron nodded, curling his nose. I swear, those two made me sick sometimes. If they would just get together already.

Ron opened the door and we walked inside. It was a bit different from Hermione's room. There was one bed on the wall which turned into a sofa. Hermione had that in her room, too, but her roommate already had that bed. The other bed was leaning up against the wall. Two desks, two closets, two shelving boxes on the walls. The sun shone brightly through the window. "Hey, I've got a great idea. Pull the drapes and shut the door." I blinked at Ron. What was he up to now? I nodded and shut the door as Hermione ran the drapes over the window. I looked worriedly as Ron grinned and pulled out his wand.

Hermione ran over to him. "What are you doing!? You can't use that now!"

Ron shook his head. "No one can see us. It's safe." Hermione growled and I chuckled. What Ron was up to I didn't know. I just liked watching Hermione squirm. "Now, Harry. Which bed do you want?" He walked over to the bed leaning against the wall. What kind of question was that? Did he think I was stupid? The other bed was attached to the wall, and had a nicer mattress. Who would want to sleep on a mattress on a noisy spring frame? I had enough of torture with my aunt and uncle, the ugly brutes.

"You mean, you're letting me choose first?" I asked a bit in surprise. Ron nodded. "I want that one of course," I said, pointing to the sofa bed.

"Good," Ron said, sliding the other bed behind me and resting it on the door. "I was hoping you'd say that." I looked at Ron, confused. What was he up to? Hermione moved over and stood beside me, resting her arm on my shoulder. I shifted to brace her. Was she getting heavier? I smiled a bit at my thought. She'd kill me for that. I turned my attention back to Ron who was sliding the shelving unit on his side of the room as close to the window as possible. He mumbled a few things to himself, none of which I cared to hear, and he readied his wand. He took a few steps back and gave his wand a flick, a solid wood bunk frame appearing. He had just made himself a loft bed on the wall. He turned and motioned for us to move out of the way, which we did. "Wingardium leviosa," he said, flicking his wand at the bed spring and mattress. It rose up slowly and made its way for the loft frame, setting down easily on the top, which was almost all the way to the ceiling. "There," he said, sliding his desk under his bed. "Now we have room to put a big TV.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh Ron, who said you'd have enough money to get one?" I looked at Hermione. Why did she have to be so sensible? It really drove me crazy.

"He won't, but I do," I told her. Somehow she always seemed to forget that I still had quite a bit of money from my parents. Sure I would have to go back to Gringotts to get it when I needed it, but I would save a lot of money being able to apparate to get there. Ron glared at me. "What?" It was a rather unnecessary question for me to ask really. I knew exactly what he was going to say. He would cross his arms over his chest and say, 'I told you I was going in on half of it.'

"I told you I was going in on half of it." Ron crossed his arms in front of him and shifted on his feet. I knew him like a book. He was my best friend after all.

"Well, we'll discuss who's buying what later," Hermione said. She reached into the small bag she had slung over her shoulder and pulled out a piece of parchment and a muggle qui – uh, pen. "Now, we need to make a list of things we need." I rolled my eyes, sitting down on my new bed.

"What's the point in going to the store when we can summon everything we need?" I asked. I really wasn't looking forward to every aspect of this. She sighed and rolled her eyes, making herself comfortable at my desk.

"Harry, our assignment from Dumbledore is to do this the muggle way." She looked at Ron who had been mimicking her. "Don't think I don't see you, freckle boy." Ron laughed. "Now, let me see. Twin size blankets – three sets, three pillows, three lamps, one TV, three new book bags, three coats, some extra hangers, and our school books and supplies. There, that ought to be enough, and if there's something I forgot, we'll get it later on." I watched her in amazement. This was the lifestyle I was trying to forget, and she just came right back into it.

"Whatever you say, Hermione." Ron rubbed his stomach. "I'm hungry."

Hermione sighed. "Is food all you think about?" Ron nodded and I laughed. "Fine, open the curtains. Let's get out of here."

* * *

"Well, I think we have everything. Did you remember to change over your money at Gringotts?" Hermione asked me as we stood in the middle of a store. We now had three cart-full of items Hermione insisted we needed. Ron continued to complain about it all, and I told him I would explain it all later.

"Yes, Hermione, I changed my money to pounds and then changed it at customs to..." Oh, what was the stinking currency around here? Hermione looked me in the eyes.

"Dollars I hope?"

I nodded. "Yeah, that's it." I looked at Ron, who was staring at the frames on some weird contraption displaying large pictures of people who were supposed to be famous and pictures that looked like kids' drawings. He seemed to be staring at a picture of a girl. I couldn't figure it out, especially after experiencing wizard pictures. What was so fascinating about their pictures? They never moved. "Ron, why are you so fascinated with that?"

Ron grinned. "She's hot. Much better looking than Hermione." Hermione dropped her jaw and slapped Ron across his arm. I couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, I'm done. Let's go." He grabbed the cart that contained his stuff and took off down the walk. Hermione glared at his back side.

"Oh, get over it, Hermione," I said, taking my cart and following Ron. We headed towards the front of the store and managed to pay for our stuff like we knew what we were doing. Ron was fascinated with the muggle candy and he managed to take three of each kind, one for each of us. What I didn't know until after the total for my items came through was that he had put most of it in my cart. I yelled at him for it later, but I decided to wait until we got back to our room.

Once we paid for everything, we decided to go find something to eat. Hermione's dad had thankfully taught me how to drive before we left London, and once we arrived here, we bought a used muggle car for the three of us to share. After stuffing all the bags in the boot, we drove around. "Let's just hope we don't get lost," Ron added from the back seat. I smiled as I pulled into a restaurant nearby.

We spent about an hour and a half at dinner, going over what classes we had and at what times. Hermione had decided to join the nursing program. She had trained to be a healer at St. Mungos and decided a bit of muggle training would help her. "It's something I wanted to do before I got accepted to Hogwarts anyway."

Ron and I chose to look into what they called entre...entrepre...entrepreneur or some big word like that. Something to do with what people wanted to buy and how much it cost to make it and how to choose it. "I'll take back whatever is in those classes and steal Fred and George's joke shop." He shrugged, shoving three of his rings of some sorts. I watched him as he made out like it was hot.

"What are those things?"

Hermione chuckled. "Didn't you hear him order? They're onion rings." I nodded, remembering seeing my cousin with some once.

We finished our meal and headed back to our dorms. It was odd going to dorms like those and using keys instead of passwords. This whole muggle thing was a pain anyway; it was something I was trying to forget.

I was so caught up in my thoughts I hadn't even realized we had pulled into the school lot. Hermione yawned and stretched as she got out of the car. "Well, come on. We have a lot to do, and I'm tired." She opened the boot of the car and grabbed as many of the bags as she could. Ron and I followed her and we went up to our rooms. "Okay, let's go to your room and I'll show you what to do with all of this," Hermione whispered to Ron.

"Yeah, and show me how to play these tapes," Ron said, holding up a cassette tape. Hermione chuckled.

I was the only one with a free hand so I was appointed to unlocking the door. We had already put all of our clothes in our rooms. Hermione had made us shrink our trunks and turn them into a gadget box to put on our desks. "People will think it's weird to have a trunk," she had said. We agreed, but reluctantly. She helped us make our beds, though Ron tried to use his wand to make it, like he usually did. "Not here!" Hermione had scolded, which Ron gave her a salute. I had laughed.

The 'funny looking vase' (which is the way Ron had described it), Hermione explained to Ron, was a lamp. "Once plugged into the outlet in the wall, it can be used as another source of light, instead of the light on the ceiling."

"This whole electricity thing seems a bit of a waste," Ron said as he turned the light on and off. "I mean, isn't it easier to just use candles and lanterns?" I chuckled.

"You just don't get it, do you?" I asked. Hermione looked at me, shocked. I smiled at her and turned back to Ron. "I mean, normal people don't know how good we got it." Ron and I laughed as we both received a glare from Hermione.

She crossed her arms and headed for the door. "Need I remind you that this is part of my world? This is how I lived for the first ten years of my life." Did she forget that I had too? "Now, I will see you in the morning. And you both better be up and ready by seven or I'm gonna curse the both of you." She stormed out and rounded the corner for her room. I smiled.

* * *

I moaned as the sun broke in through the opened curtains. Ron, flat-headed, air-headed Ron, left the curtains open. "Aw, man. Ron, I could kill you for that!" I jumped when the door opened and Ron walked in.

"Kill me for what?" I rolled over and found my glasses, sliding them on. Ron was already dressed and was drying his head with a towel. He looked like he had been up all night, and surprisingly, his bed was already made like he had never slept in it.

"You're up surprisingly early," I told him, forcing myself out of bed. Ron blushed. What had he been up to?

"Well, you went to sleep early, and I was bored." I just stared at him. So? What was his point? "Okay, if you must know, I stayed in Hermione's room last night." I widened my eyes.

"You what?!" I couldn't believe him, and I didn't believe that she would have allowed it.

"It's not what you are thinking. I merely went over there to ask Hermione how to set up this clock. Her roommate never came in and we borrowed her TV. Next thing we knew it was six o'clock." I nodded at him. Surprisingly I believed him.

"So, what time is it then?" I asked, looking at my wristwatch. A quarter to seven. "Well, I guess I better jump in the shower and get dressed." Ron nodded and sat to turn on the TV.

We met Hermione at her room fifteen minutes later and decided to go into the next building to the dining hall and see what they were serving. Ron was learning that he couldn't eat as much or he wouldn't have money left. After breakfast, we went downstairs to see if the book store was open. We had our schedules in our pockets and our new student ids, which we had gotten yesterday, just in case we needed them. Once we arrived downstairs at the bookstore, Hermione told us how to find our books, as if we didn't know, but we played along anyway.

"Look, this is how you do it," she said, unfolding her class schedule and walking up to one of the bookshelves. "Here, my first class is Biology 221, Section 03, Instructor Banes. So you go to these slips under the books and find the matching items." Hermione pulled her first book off the shelf. "Just that simple." Ron and I glanced at each other and shrugged, trying to play stupid.

I didn't totally understand it though. Back at Hogwarts buying our books was easy. They actually told us the book titles that we needed. But, I guess that if they did that here it would get a bit complicated and useless. Within twenty minutes I had five books in my arms, one for each of my classes. I found Ron at the front counter.

He shook his head at me. "Seems a bit pointless, doesn't it?" he asked me, dropping all of his books on the counter. "I mean, it's ridiculous. All this paper wasted on all these books." I smiled as Hermione came up, seven books in her arms.

"Why on earth do you have so many books?" I asked her.

She gave me a cold glance. "I needed them. I have six classes, and one class requires two books." I rolled my eyes. Over achiever, she was. "Now remember," she whispered to us as the worker began scanning Ron's books, "Dumbledore is paying for our schooling, including our books."

"Since when?" I asked. This was news to me.

"Since I got a post from him the other day." Ron and I looked at each other and turned our attention to the store worker as she scanned Ron's last book.

"Your total is 350," she said. Ron widened his eyes.

"350! Merlin that's a lot!" I tugged at Ron. How many times have we told him not to use that word?! The worker looked at him confused. Hermione gave Ron a quick, quiet growl.

"We're not from the country," Hermione told her and she dropped her books on the counter next to mine. "And we're paying together." Hermione pulled out a square piece of plastic from her pocket and handed it to the girl behind the counter. She scanned mine and Hermione's books.

"What is that?" I asked quietly, trying to not let myself be heard by muggles. Hermione shushed me. Okay, fine, don't tell me. I'm tired of this whole bit anyway, being forced back into the muggle world when I was seriously trying to ignore it. After getting our books, we made our way back to our rooms. Hermione left us and went to her room, noticing her roommate back and went to meet her. Ron and I made our way to our room, throwing our books on our desks. "I can't believe that."

Ron looked at me. "Can't believe what?"

"How much those books cost. A thousand dollars for books?" I plopped down on my bed and rubbed my eyes under my glasses. Classes hadn't even started yet and already I was stressed. I just wanted to go back to my auror training. Why did Dumbledore insist on us taking this assignment? We weren't even his students anymore. I heard footsteps coming down the hall and Hermione made her appearance in the doorway.

"Hey guys, I want you to meet my roommate. Lara, this is Harry and Ron's the red-headed one hiding on his bed up there. Guys, this is Lara." Hermione walked over and plopped on the sofa bed beside me.

I stared at Lara. She looked different from any of the girls I had seen, even at Hogwarts. She had this red hair that fell across her shoulders and these amazing green eyes. She walked closer to me and extended her hand. For some reason, my stomach felt like it was going to be sick. I slowly took her hand and she smiled. "Hi, Harry?" I nodded and she turned to Ron. Ron had suddenly noticed her, I think, because he came off of his bed quicker than normal. "Hi. So, you're Ron?" Lara said. Ron nodded, his cheeks reddening slightly and they connected hands. I glared at Ron. How dare he touch her! Wait, where did that come from?

"Harry, are you okay?" I heard Hermione say, but it seemed so distant. "Harry?" I shook my head and drew my attention back to Hermione.

"Yes, I...I'm fine."

Hermione smiled and leapt up. "Good. I'm gonna cancel dinner with you guys. Lara is going to show me around. Right, Lara?" Lara turned and took a glance at me before looking at Hermione.

She nodded. "Sure, but why don't the guys come too?" she said. My heart jumped. Stupid thing, what was happening? "I mean, once school starts we won't get much time for anything else." She had a point. Hermione sighed.

"You have a point. Okay, so we'll all go to dinner." Lara nodded and made eye contact with me. There was an awkward silence, but somehow it didn't seem to bother me. Okay, so maybe this wasn't such a bad idea that Dumbledore had.


	2. Ch 2 Confessions Part 1

A/N: Finally! Another chapter completed. Sorry it took so long to finish. This one's a bit shorter than the first, but you'll see why as soon as I finish the next two chapters. Anyway, enjoy!

Disclaimer: The usual. The only thing that's mine is the idea and Lara. No one can use here without my permission!

Hermione's POV

I yawned and slammed my book shut. I rubbed my eyes. I had never had this much work to do at Hogwarts, but it was challenging and refreshing. Though I was tired, I was enjoying this. I looked over at my roommate, Lara LeDieux. She was sitting quietly on her sofa bed reading a book. We hadn't had much time to talk since school started. Somehow we always seemed to miss each other. I backed away from my desk and sat on my bed. "So, Lara," I said to her. "It seems for once we might actually get a chance to chat and get to know each other." She looked up from her book with a smile.

She closed her book and set it aside. "You're right. What do you want to talk about?"

"Tell me what school you went to. I remember you telling Harry at one point that you were glad to be back in the U.S." I tipped my head at her, waiting for a response. It was kind of a dangerous question, because she could easily ask me that, and I couldn't really tell her.

She nodded, starting to look a bit nervous. She shifted uncomfortably and cleared her throat. "I…I uh, went to one of those fancy private institutes overseas. What about you?" I nodded.

"Yeah, me too. I kind of miss it. Mum and Dad wanted to go there to, but they didn't get accepted." If only she knew why. But, as far as I knew she was a muggle, and I couldn't let her know. Though, if Ron wasn't more careful, he'd spill the beans to her. "What was your school like?" I asked her. She looked at me, shifting yet again uncomfortably.

"Well, it was a bit too…." she paused, obviously searching for the right words, "a bit too rich and geeky. I guess that's the right way to describe it." She stood up and pulled her bed out all of the way, making herself more comfortable. She looked at me, looking me straight in the eye. It made me a bit nervous to be perfectly honest. "Hermione, can you keep a secret?"

I nodded at her, a bit surprised. "Yes, of course. What is it?"

"Well, I'll tell you the name of the school, but it never leaves this room, promise?" I nodded. "Okay, it was Durmstrang Institute." She looked at me, worried about what my reaction would be.

Suddenly it hit me. Of course she was a witch too. Suddenly all of her actions and personality began to fit, and she was an equal. "Of course!" I said, startling her. "Oh, sorry, but I'm a former Hogwarts student!" She smiled in relief. This was going to be a night of reminiscing of teachers and comparison of the two schools.

* * *

I smiled, setting my pencil on my desk. Finally, after thirty minutes I had finished my first biology test. Looking around the room briefly I realized I was the first one finished. I put my things together in my bag and took my test to the front. I whispered to Lara, who was in the nursing program as well, that I would wait for her outside. She had made a few schedule changes and ended up in all but one of my classes. So, we could study together, when she wasn't with Harry. I chuckled to myself at the thought of Harry and Lara. Not that I didn't think they should be together, but so far all they've done is go out. Ron and I hadn't seen them touch each other at all, except for a quick hug before going to our own rooms. 

My thoughts were interrupted as Lara came out of the room. "Well, one test down. How'd you do?" she asked me.

"I think I did just fine," I told her, grinning. "What about you?"

"I think I did well enough." She looked at me as we headed for the dining hall. We were meeting Harry and Ron for lunch. "Hermione, can I ask you a personal question?"

I nodded. "Of course."

"What's the deal with you and Harry?" she asked me.

I was a bit surprised at her question. Where had it come from. This was not something I really wanted to get into with anyone, but she had the right to know. "Wow. Wasn't expecting that."

"Sorry, but I got to know."

I nodded. "No, it's all right. Harry, Ron and I met on the train on our way to Hogwarts for our first year. I mean, it was a rough start but we eventually became friends. It was our seventh year before we ever started going out. It was good times of romance, but something just came between us. But, our past relationship doesn't get in the way of our friendship. If he's happy, I'm happy." I just couldn't tell her everything, it was still too painful.

She smiled at me as we entered the dining hall. "Good, because I think I like him."

We giggled and walked up to where Ron and Harry were standing. I was happy for the both of them, and I was anxious to see how it was going to turn out. But I was telling Lara the truth. If Harry was happy, I was happy. We were friends and nothing more.

"What are you two going on about now?" Ron asked. We shook our heads, trying to hide the smiles on our faces.

"Nothing," I said to Ron. I don't know why, but I turned him around and slid my arm around his. I was leaving Harry and Lara together I guess, but somehow it felt good to be on Ron's arm. "Hermione, are you trying to tell me something?" Ron teased. I just smiled at him. "Cos, you know, it is a bit depressing being in my room by myself while Harry and Lara go out every weekend."

I nodded. "Yeah, it is rather boring, isn't it?" We met eyes, and for some reason my heart jumped. What was going on with me? I couldn't like Ron Weasley, could I? We were just friends.

Ron reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out some money. "Let me buy you lunch today, 'Mione." He looked back to me, meeting my eyes.

"What is this? A bit of decency in the youngest Weasley boy?" I had always given Ron a bad time about being the youngest of five boys with only a younger sister. He shrugged his shoulder at me and I smiled. "I would love for you to buy me lunch. Are you sure you have enough?" I didn't want to break him. He nodded. "Okay then. Buy me lunch."

* * *

Lara turned to look in the mirror and ran a brush through her hair. "I hate these curls," she said, throwing her brush on the dresser. "Harry mentioned that you had curly hair. How do you keep it so straight?" I smiled at her, taking a seat on my bed. 

"It's a thing I like to call my wand." I looked at her, and she had just turned at me in surprise. "Oh, come on. Don't tell me you never used your wand to bewitch your hair to make it look better?" If she hadn't, she'd better start.

"No, I haven't, I never even thought about it."

I smiled. "Try it." She nodded and I watched as she straightened and brightened the red in her hair. She smiled. "See, told you."

She nodded. "Thanks, you're the best. So what are you going to do while I'm gone?" She turned to her closet to pull out her jacket.

"Oh, I'll probably just lounge around here tonight." I wasn't about to tell her that Ron and I were going to go out. Honestly, I really didn't want to hear the guff from either one of them. "Don't worry about me, you go out and enjoy yourself and I'll see you in the morning." She nodded and left the room. I would give Harry and Lara fifteen minutes to have a good leave. The plans originally were for me to go to Ron's room, but five minutes after Lara left, there was a knock on the door. I jumped, and ran to the mirror. What was I worried about? I was perfect. I opened the door to Ron's smiling face. He looked so good and groomed. "Hello there."

He swallowed nervously. "Hello," he squeaked. I smiled. "Sorry, I don't know why I'm so nervous."

I shook my head. "Don't fret over it. So, what do you want to do?"

He grinned. "Well, there's a horse stable about fifteen minutes from here. I got a hold of a friend's car. I thought we'd go for a sunset ride near the lake." I smiled and nodded. It was perfect and romantic, a bit surprising considering Ron had thought of it. However so, I was genuinely excited and couldn't wait to get there. He slowly extended his hand and I took it with a smile. "I hope you enjoy it, 'Mione."

"I'm sure I will."

* * *

I smiled as Ron walked up to me, a horse at each side. "I don't know how I did it, but I talked them into letting us take the horses on our own, without a guide. They agreed, but we only have two hours." I smiled. 

"Okay, let's go." I took the horse standing at Ron's left side. It was black. I pulled myself into the saddle easily. It was nothing new for me. Ron just stood there, watching. "What's the matter, Ron? Come on, let's go."

He shook his head. "You make it look so easy." I grinned. "You make everything look easy." I chuckled as he struggled to get into the saddle. He made it eventually, and turned his red-freckled face towards me. "Well, that was fun."

I smiled. "Come on, let's go."

It was about a thirty minute ride to get to the lake. We had an hour before we had to head back to the stables. Ron looked down at his watch. "We have thirty minutes before sunset." I nodded and stared across the lake. It was a great view from here. The oranging sun glistened off of the still lake water. The reflections of the mountains were beginning to overtake the lake, making it darker by the minute. "Hermione, I have a confession to make," Ron's voice interrupted my thoughts. I looked up at him, a bit nervous about what he was going to tell me. I could see him clear his throat awkwardly. I turned my horse so that my back was to the lake and I was face to face with Ron. He looked up at me. His freckled cheeks were getting redder by the second, and I smiled. "Hermione, I don't know what happened, but somewhere through all of this madness between you and Harry, I started liking you."

I smiled weakly at him. My heart ached with the thought of Harry, but looking into Ron's sincere eyes I somehow forgot about it. "Go on."

He took in a deep breath and eased his horse forward a couple steps, putting us even closer together. "I don't know what else to tell you. Every time I think about what you went through, I only wish that I had been there more for you. But at the same time, I'm glad it wasn't me, because who knows if we'd still be here spending this time together." I nodded. He was right. Harry and I were strong through this, and we were moving on. It was time. "Hermione, would it be bad for me to ask you to marry me without us ever dating?"

I widened my eyes at him. Was this a joke? Did he really just ask me what I thought he had? What was I going to tell him? Did I want to? I was so confused, but I said the first thing that came to mind. "No." Where had that come from?

Ron looked at me, surprised. "No? Will you then?"

I stared at him, speechless. Ron and I had made it a point to tease and torment each other. Where had all of these feelings and emotions come from? I turned my horse slightly so I could get a view of the lake behind me. The sun had begun slipping behind the mountains and only a small sliver of it could still be seen. Vibrant colors of orange and red caressed the sky and glistened off of the water. It was perfect. I turned the horse back to face Ron. I was still speechless, but I could let me head talk for me. I gave him a small, simple nod.

He smiled at me. The color of the sunset reflected off of his eyes, and leaned over the edge of his horse. His free hand, that wasn't holding his horse steady, slowly moved forward and he rested it on the shoulders of my horse to brace himself. "I love you, 'Mione," he said quietly.

I began to lean closer to him. "I love you, too." Our lips met in a warm, slow kiss. The longer he stayed the more I gave to him. Regaining his balance, he brought his hand up and I felt it stroke the side of my face. I took in a deep breath threw my nose, not wanting to break the kiss. It was so perfect. He had been everything I wanted and needed, especially now. He was right in front of me all of those years, and I never gave him a chance. But not now. From this moment on it was all going to change. I was finally going to be happy.


	3. Long Time Dream Come True

A/N Okay, this is the newest chapter. Still short, but I left it where I thought best. Hope you all enjoy!

Disclaimer: The usual. Only the idea is mine. Rest is Rowling's.

Ron's POV

Hermione and I rode back to the stables in silence. We were both taking in what had just happened between us. It was a half hour ride of silent thoughts. Each one made me smile. Hermione was a person I could connect to. Though there were times she had made me mad, like the time I thought her cat had eaten Scabbers, I still loved her. I had realized it our third year at Hogwarts when we were on the hill watching the executioner throw his blade down on what we had thought to be Buck Beak, Hagrid's Hippogriff; Hermione had held on to me so tightly and cried into my shoulder. It broke my heart when she and Harry decided to get together after school. But I stood back, like the best friend I was. I was stuck in the middle of what was known as the perfect romance, as much as I despised the fact that it was Harry and not me.

But now, it was me and not Harry. I'm still not sure why I had asked Hermione to marry me. It had come out of nowhere. I said the first thing that came to my mind, and I wasn't really expecting her to say yes. But she had, and it was the best thing to happen to me since Percy got in trouble at the ministry. Serves him right for being a stuck-up, ungrateful, little snob. But that's entirely another story.

I hadn't even realized we had made it back to the stable until my horse started to get anxious about seeing his home. I turned and looked over at Hermione. She looked so beautiful sitting on that horse. She noticed me looking and met my gaze. I smiled at her, and she returned my smile.

"What's that for?" she asked me.

"Just because." She blushed a bit and I chuckled. "Is this a blush on Ms. Granger's face?" She grinned even bigger and jumped off of the horse gracefully. She made it look so easy. I clumsily fell of the horse, hitting my head on a bail of hay. "Ow."

Hermione started laughing. "You are so un-coordinated."

"Is that a problem for you?" I teased.

Hermione lowered her face and gave me an evil-grin. It made me worried. "That depends on how you are in the bedroom." I dropped my jaw. Did she just ask me what I think she just asked me? She began to laugh hysterically as the stable owners came to take the horses. I ignored her and paid them the extra money I promised for allowing us to go on our own. Apparently it was against their policy, but they were easily bribed. She turned to me and smiled, reaching for my hand, which I gladly took. "Thank you for this, Ron," she said with a smile on her face.

I squeezed her hand and turned to head for the car Hermione had borrowed from Lara, as Harry had our car. "You're welcome, 'Mione." She made me so happy. I don't think she really understood just how much, but I was determined to make her happy in return. "Can I ask you something?" I asked cautiously as we got into the car. She looked at me, a bit surprised.

"Of course, Ron. You can ask me anything." She turned in her seat so that we were facing each other.

I took a deep breath. "Are you okay with me asking you like that?" I had to know where she stood on this.

She nodded, taking my hand. Her touch made me tingle. "Yes, Ron. It was a bit sudden, but I couldn't have asked for a better time or place for it to happen." I smiled at her answer. It was just what I wanted to hear. I wanted her to be ready; I didn't want to rush her into anything at all.

I looked deep into her eyes. Never before had I seen them shine so much. Except, of course when she was with Harry, but Harry's not here. Stop talking about Harry! I slowly brought my free hand up to touch the side of her face, and she leaned her head into my hand. I stroked her face, slowly pulling it towards mine. "I love you, Hermione Granger," I whispered when my lips were just shy of hers.

"I love you, Ronald Weasley," she whispered back. Slowly I let my lips touch hers and we were taken into a slow, long, passionate kiss that neither one of us wanted to pull away from. I let go of her hand and brought my free hand to the lower portion of her back, holding her tightly and pulling her closer to me. I had never felt anything like this. Everything that was around me had suddenly disappeared. It was just me and Hermione and our passion. I felt Hermione take in a deep breath, and then she pulled away from me slowly. I could tell she really didn't want to, but she obviously felt she had to. She looked at me awkwardly. "Sorry."

"It's okay."

"Uh…we better go before we get locked in," she said. I looked up to see the stable owners waiting impatiently for us to leave so they could lock their drive gate. I nodded, not wanting this moment to end. I turned and put my belt on, watching Hermione as she started to drive away. "Ron, thank you."

"For what?" I asked curiously.

"For loving me, but not pushing me." She took a quick glance at me without losing sight of where she was driving to.

"You're welcome, 'Mione." I turned to watch out of the front window. We were coming up to the road that would take us back to the college, but she didn't turn there. "Where are we going to, 'Mione?" She obviously had something in her head.

"Well, since it is the weekend, and tomorrow's Saturday, and we have no where else to be, I thought we'd go find some place where we could…." she paused, a blush forming on her cheeks again, "where we could spend the night together."

I swallowed hard. I was not expecting that, but I wasn't going to complain either. "Uh…sure, 'Mione. O…Of course we can."

She smiled, not taking her eyes off of the road. "You're not nervous are you?" I shook my head, my eyes a bit wider than usual. "I haven't seen you this nervous since the NEWTS."

I threw my head back into the seat of the car. "Don't remind me." Those were our end of school exams that seventh years took. I didn't really want to be reminded of them, but leave it to Hermione to do it. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see." I gave her a confused expression, which only returned me a mischievous grin. I watched as she pulled into the parking lot of an expensive-looking hotel near the park by the lake. "Now, you sit here and I'll go get us a room."

"Are you serious?" I squeaked.

She chuckled. "Of course I am." I swallowed nervously. She was obviously more ready for someone in her life then I imagined. Now I had to decide if I was ready? I mean, I was anxious to be with her, but after what had happened, I didn't think she'd be ready yet. She bounced back to the car, her long black hair flying behind her. "Okay, we have to be out of the room by eleven tomorrow morning. That will give us enough time to be back at campus to meet Harry and Lara for lunch." She was glowing, and I had butterflies in my stomach.

* * *

Hermione looked about the room first. It was a nice-sized room, bigger than either of our dorm rooms. A table was in the back corner under the window, a lavatory just inside the door, and a single bed. This made me nervous. "Okay, Hermione. What have you done here?"

She grinned, pulling me into the room and shutting and locking the door behind us. She pulled out her wand that she had hidden in her pocket and pointed it my way. "We didn't go back for clothes, so here they are," she said, flicking her wand at the closet bar. Two pairs of pyjamas and two outfits appeared hanging in the room. "There, now we have everything we need, so we don't have to leave." I swallowed nervously and she set her wand carefully by the TV. "Ron, hold me."

I obeyed, taking her in my arms and hugging her tightly yet gently. It felt so good to finally have her in my arms. This girl standing in front of me was everything to me, and I was never going to let her go. "Hermione, are you sure you want to be here?" I wanted to be sure before I let anything happen between the two of us. I felt her head nod on my chest.

"Yes," she said quietly. She moved her head on looked up at me. I kissed the top of her forehead and she pulled away slightly. "Kiss me, Ronald Weasley." I smiled at her and let go of her with one arm, bringing my hand up to the back of her neck. I lowered my lips down to hers and kissed her softly. I felt her take in a deep breath, and I followed, taking in the scent of her hair and the warm feeling that came over me when we kissed. I felt her take one of her arms away from me, and I felt her hand again pulling up my tucked in shirt. I pulled away from her kiss, a bit startled. "What's the matter?"

I shook my head. "I just want to make sure you're ready for what might happen."

She nodded, sliding her hand inside the back of my shirt and placing her hand on the middle of my back. "Of course, Ron. I wouldn't be here if I wasn't."

I smiled at her and found my lips on hers again. I felt her other hand on my lower back and I slowly pried her lips open with mine. I wasn't totally sure about what I was doing; I was just going with my feelings. But I had a feeling Hermione was going to teach me everything she knew. I slowly let my tongue slide into her mouth, and I felt her move her tongue to meet mine. I still had a hand on the back of her neck, and the other was on her side. I found myself moving my hand up and down her side, stroking her gently.

She pushed my tongue back and pulled hers back into her mouth. She slowly broke our kiss and looked me in the eyes. "Don't be afraid," she whispered. My heart began to pound, but everything that had just happened felt so right. "Don't be afraid, Ron. I'm not going to turn you down again." I took in a slow deep breath, taking in everything around me. I let go of her and took her hands.

"Hermione, there's something I've got to say to you first." Where had that come from? What was I doing? I had her right where I've always dreamed of having her, and I wanted to talk? Come on you idiot! Okay, I have now reached an all-time low, calling myself an idiot. Though, I couldn't deny that I was. She didn't say anything, but squeezed my hands, assuming to give me confidence in whatever I was about to say. I'm not so sure I knew myself. "'Mione, this is a moment I've been dreaming of ever since we were at Hogwarts. There were times when I even thought about blindfolding you and taking you to the Room of Requirement to have my way with you. But I also knew that you were in love with Harry. But I'm not going to ruin this moment by talking about our best friend." I squeezed her hands and she smiled. "Okay, I've said my piece."

She nodded. "Good." The next thing I knew she had shoved me backwards and I made a hard landing on the bed. "Don't you interrupt me again with your…your 'piece words'. It's my turn to really get to know you in a much better way then I already do." I swallowed hard again as Hermione crawled onto the bed. I backed up nervously, placing my shoulders on the lower end of the pillows. Hermione continued to crawl towards me. "Don't be afraid, Ron. I'm not gonna do anything you don't want to do."

I looked her in the eyes. She was so beautiful. "I know you won't." I smiled and held out my arms, pulling her as close to me as I could get. She was now resting halfway over me, on my side. I stroked her face and pulled her head close to mine. "Just tell me if you want me to stop."

Hermione nodded and I took her into a deep, passionate kiss. It felt so good to be here, holding her next to me, kissing her. I took my free hand and found the bottom of her shirt. I slid my hand onto her skin and stroked her back carefully. She sat up a bit and I pulled her shirt over her head. She smiled, blushing a little, but pulled me back into a kiss. Man, I loved her. I felt so many new feelings that I had never felt before. I also found my pants weren't holding me anymore. I continued to undress the beauty lying beside me, and she began to undress me. For thirty minutes we caressed each other. We were enjoying just having this time to spend together.

Hermione broke our kiss and looked me in the eyes. She smiled and gave me a small, barely visible nod and rolled over on her back. She pulled me over her and wrapped her legs around mine. I slowly separated her legs and pushed her knees down gently. I gave her a small kiss on the neck as I lowered myself down on her, and she let out a small groan. It felt so good to finally be with her this way. I let myself get lost in the moment. The rest of our night was filled with passion and the best night's sleep I had had in a very long time.


	4. Thanksgiving Invitation

Ch. 4 ~ Thanksgiving Invitation

Lara's POV

My heart pounded as I walked towards Harry's door. I didn't know why I was nervous, I just was. I knew Harry the second I saw him; who wouldn't? He was the 'Boy Who Lived'. But he didn't know who I was. Mum had always told me I'd come in contact with him, I just didn't realize it would be so soon, or in this way. I smiled as Harry came out of his room, a bouquet of my favorite white roses in his hand. "You look great," I said, looking over his tight black ensemble.

"So do you," he said, putting the roses in a vase he already had prepared. "These are for you, but we'll leave them here." I nodded as he shut and locked his door. He turned to go down the hall, sliding his arm around my waist. "So, where would you like to go?"

I shook my head. "Hadn't really thought about it."

He smiled his crooked smile at me. "Good. I thought wed drive down to the lake and go out on a rental boat." I smiled and nodded. He was so different now. When we first met, he thought I was a muggle. When he found out I went to Durmstrang, he was thrilled, and suddenly himself.

It was a nice drive to the lake. Neither one of us said a lot. I was too busy concentrating on my nerves. Once we got to the lake, I saw a mid-sized yacht already waiting. "You've been planning ahead, Potter," I teased.

"But of course," said he, helping me out of the car. He slid his arm around my shoulders and led me down towards the docks. A boat captain was waiting patiently.

"Welcome, Mr. Potter. Two hours enough time for ya?" Harry nodded. "And of course total privacy for the lady." The captain gave me a wink and I turned slightly pink.

Harry helped me onto the boat and down into the cabin. It was perfect. White rose petals covered the cabin's bed. The table held a dinner set for two. Soft music filled the room. "I hope it's all right." I nodded, half in shock. I watched as he looked out the cabin window. "Good, we're moving." He reached inside his jacket and pulled out his wand. He flicked it at the door and the lock jumped into place. He turned and looked at the table. He gave his wand another flick and our plates filled with Alfredo pasta. A third flick filled our glasses with bubbling champagne. "Perfecto," he said, sliding into his seat. He began eating, really, really quickly. "Forgive me, Lara," he said, a mouth full of pasta. "I'm really hungry; I missed dinner."

I smiled, beginning to slowly eat my share. "It's ok." We ate mostly in silence. This wasn't like Harry. "Is everything ok?" I asked concernedly.

Harry looked up with his last bite of food in his mouth. "Yeah, why?"

"You just seem really quiet," I answered. I laid my fork down. My nerves were too high to eat.

Harry swallowed and shook his head. "I'm sorry. I guess I'm more nervous than I thought." There was a slight moment of awkward silence between us. Harry took a deep breath and slid closer to me. "I have been trying to find the perfect words to say to you today. No matter how hard I tried, nothing ever worked so, I'm just gonna start talking. When I graduated from Hogwarts, Dumbledore said in my 21st year my tea leaves would have an acorn, a moon, a flag, and a ring. Did you have Divination?" I shook my head. I didn't really believe in that stuff and Durmstrang's Divination professor was a real fruit. (A/N: American for "gay"; ok, so Lara's picked up a bit of the American language in the last couple of months! Hehe! Ok…read on…) "It uh…he basically said, at some point over my 21st year there would be good health, love, danger, and marriage." He paused. This last one surprised me. Marriage? Who? Me? My heart pounded and my stomach flipped.

"Okay," I said quietly. "What exactly are you saying?"

Harry blushed and swallowed hard. He looked like he was going to lose his dinner. "Lara, I'm not totally sure what's happening here. I've been trying so hard to figure out why Dumbledore sent us here. The only thing I can figure is to go into hiding." No, that wasn't it. "But, whatever the reason, we were brought together." I smiled, blushing as he took my hands. "Will you be my girl forever?"

My heart jumped. "What exactly are you asking?"

Harry sighed, squeezing my hands. "I'm asking if you'll marry me."

I couldn't believe my ears. Did Harry Potter just propose to me? He did, and I didn't know what to say…so I said the first thing to come to mind. "Yes." I smiled as he let out the deep breath he had been holding. I laughed. "What's the matter? Did you think I was going to say no?"

"I thought you might," he said, a blush on his cheeks. Harry leaned towards me. "I don't have a ring for you yet."

He was so close I could feel his warm breath on my lips. My heart pounded, and our lips brushed together. "It's okay."

Our lips brushed a second time, but we never connected them. I felt Harry's hands slide into place at my sides. I shivered at his touch. His breathing became deeper and his grip tighter. Our lips brushed a third time, but this time Harry quickly moved his lips down and began kissing the side of my neck. I tilted my head back and let my feelings take over. I breathed in the scent of his hair, felt the softness of his skin, and suddenly we were moving towards the bed. Harry somehow had managed to pick me up and was now gliding smoothly across the floor towards the cabin's bed.

Harry pulled his head back up and we kissed passionately as he laid me carefully on the bed. As soon as my head hit the pillow, I knew exactly where our relationship was headed. This was the moment we would physically commit to each other forever. My heart skipped as we got closer and closer to our close off. It seemed like we had been that way forever when suddenly the boat jerked to a halt. Harry jumped up, trying his hardest to adjust his pants. He raced to the cabin door. "We've stopped." He grabbed his wand and flicked it at the door, unlocking the lock. He turned and looked at me; I was struggling to redress myself. He smiled crookedly and flicked his wand at me and then himself. Everything was back to normal. He turned back as the door opened. "Captain?"

"Sorry to bother you and the lady, Mr. Potter. I'm afraid we've lost a rudder. There's a boat coming out for you and your mistress. We'll refund your money of course." With that the captain turned back and went back to the deck.

Harry sighed. His night had obviously been ruined. "It's okay, Harry. I'm not totally disappointed." I stood up and walked closer to him. We wrapped our arms around each other. We ended our boat trip with a soft, gentle kiss.

It wasn't long before we were back at the dorms. Harry had walked me to my room in silence. It wasn't awkward, just silent. He smiled at me as we stopped in front of the door. "I'm sorry things didn't go quite as planned."

I shook my head with a smile. "It's okay." We kissed again and I turned to unlock the door. "'Mione and Ron must not be home yet." I opened the door and flipped the light on. I jumped when Hermione jumped off of her bed, pants almost off of her hips and a redheaded somebody on the bed. "'Mione! Ron! What on earth!"

The two blushed. "We weren't expecting you back for a while yet," Hermione said sheepishly.

"Obviously not," Harry said, a stupid grin plastered on his face. "Well, come on, mate," he said to Ron. "I'm tired. Let's get some sleep for the Burrow." Ron nodded and got off of the bed. "Night, love," Harry said, winking.

"Oh," Ron said, turning back to face me, "mum says to invite you with us to the Burrow for the holiday." I nodded, accepting his invitation. "Goodnight, 'Mione." I smiled as he and Ron headed back down the hall.

I turned to a blushing, disappointed looking Hermione. "Sorry. Our boat trip got cut short."

Hermione nodded, plopping on her bed. "It's okay. We really didn't need to again." I widened my eyes. Did she just say again?

"Did you just say again?" Hermione blushed. "Tell me, 'Mione."

She blushed again, but sat up to look at me. "He proposed to me, and then we went to a hotel for a few hours." That was all I could get out of her.

"You didn't!" Hermione just nodded. "Well, looks like we're both engaged now." I smiled, thinking about how nervous Harry was when he was trying to ask me.

"Harry asked you, too!" I nodded. "Girl, we in big trouble now." We both laughed as we got ready for bed. This holiday was going to be good. Not just because we were getting a break from school, but because we both had the men we loved. Love? I actually loved someone? Well, I guess those tea leaves aren't so bad after all.

A/N: aww! Sappy romances. Oh, sorry. Anyway, please tell me what you think.


	5. Confessions Part 2

Well, here it is. Ch. 5. Been wondering what's up with Harry and Hermione? Find out here.

Chapter 5 ~ Confessions: Part 2

Harry's POV

It had been a long week since our boat trip. I was kind of embarrassed about how the night ended. How could I have let it go that far? That was not my original intentions. I was so happy when she said she'd marry me I lost sight of what I was doing. I shook my head, remembering that night. "From now on, I won't take her until after the wedding," I promised myself quietly. Ron was still asleep. It was early on Saturday before Thanksgiving. The sun hadn't even come up yet, and it wouldn't for another two hours. I was also awake thinking about my scar. It had been burning all week. Something it hadn't done since I nearly defeated Voldemort at the end of 7th year. Yes, I said 'nearly.' If only I hadn't slipped on that rock!

I jumped out of my thoughts as an owl's beak tapped on the window. I ran to the window and untied the letter from his leg. He immediately flew away. "Must not need a response." I unfolded the letter.

Dear Harry,

You must leave America immediately. You will finish your schooling long distance, at least for now. You must quickly get the girls and Ron. The Weasley's are expecting you within the next ten minutes. Don't waste time!

Albus Dumbledore

Panic ran through me as I finished the letter. "Voldemort must know where we are!" I jumped as another owl tapped on the window. I quickly grabbed the letter and the owl flew away. I unfolded it quickly.

You're wasting time, Harry.

"How does he do that?" I shrugged my shoulders and drew out my wand. I flicked it at Ron's head and water splashed in his face. He jumped awake and almost fell off his bunk.

"Bloody hell, Harry! What was that for?!"

"Dumbledore's orders. We have to leave now!" I was starting to get more panicked. "Quick!" I whipped my wand around the room and all of our belongings disappeared.

"Dumbledore! Was here?"

"No you idiot! He sent an owl!" I turned and opened the door. I flicked my wand at the both of us again and our pajamas turned into clothes. We both raced down the hall as quietly as we could. Ron knocked on the girls' door and I got worried when they didn't answer. I pointed my wand at the door knob and whispered, "Alohomora."

The door popped open and Ron and I went inside. We found they were both sound asleep on their beds, but there was no time to admire Lara sleeping. "I'll take care of their things." Ron pulled out his wand. "You wake them up." I nodded as Ron began sending along their belongings to the Burrow. I gently shook both of them awake.

"'Mione, Lara. Wake up. We have to leave." It took doing this twice for them to finally jostle awake.

"Harry!" Hermione said, startled. "What are you doing here?"

I pulled Lara up out of her bed. "Dumbledore's orders. We have to leave."

"Get dressed, both of you." Ron finished sending along their things. He was starting to get panicked now.

Hermione nodded and drew out her wand, changing her pajamas to clothes. Lara did the same. "Ok." I shut their room door. "We apparate to the Burrow." There was a worried look on Lara's face. "What is it?"

"I don't know where the Burrow is." This thought hadn't occurred to me. How were we going to guarantee she get there? We all jumped as an owl tapped on the window.

Hermione ran to the window and pulled a large key off of the owl's leg. "How does Dumbledore do that?" He had sent us a portkey at the perfect time. We all had a quick laugh before gathering around the key.

It was somewhat small for the four of us, so we could only put a couple of fingers on it. Once we were all touching the key, I felt a tug at my stomach and within seconds we were standing at the end of the drive to the Burrow. A sea of heads, mostly red, stood at the house, ready to greet us. "Welcome to the Burrow." I took Lara's hand.

"Thank you."

The four of us began walking towards the sea of people. Mrs. Weasley was the first to contact us. "Oh my dears! I'm so glad you made it in time!" I noticed a tear on her cheek as she embraced Ron. Dumbledore cleared his throat as if to silence her. "Right, well let's go inside. Lunch will be ready shortly." Right. The time change. I smiled and led Lara inside. There were even more people inside, and it seemed as if the whole order had joined us.

Lara looked about the room, eyes widened. I smiled. "Lara, I'd like you to meet the gang." I began pointing everyone out as I said their names. "Let's see…Tonks, Moody, Remus, Neville, Seamus, Angelina, Oliver, Fred and George, Bill, Charlie, Mr. Weasley, Ginny, Minerva, Hagrid, Lavender, and Dumbledore. Yes, I think that's everyone." The group nodded at Lara and a breakout of whispers from the older half of the group confused me. I looked at Lara. Her face had turned a light shade of pink. "Ron," I said, trying to break the uneasiness, "don't you have something to tell everyone?"

Ron blushed as he looked about the room, and then to Hermione. She nodded at him with a smile. "Right. Mum, will you come back in here please?"

Mrs. Weasley came into the room from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. "Yes dear? But make it quick, lunch is ready."

Ron nodded, his face almost the same color as his hair. "Right. Well, my news is that I asked Hermione to marry me and she said yes." The whole room exploded into bursts of excitement as they surrounded Ron and Hermione. I smiled at Lara. She looked worried that they were going to be suffocated.

"Don't worry, I won't tell them about us until you're more comfortable here." Lara smiled in relief.

The rest of the day was enjoyable. We all spent the afternoon playing a game of Quidditch. Well, not everyone. Mrs. Weasley kept cleaning house. Mr. Weasley, Dumbledore, Prof. McGonagall, and Hagrid were in deep conversation. And Ginny didn't play because, we found out later, that she was expecting and Neville refused to leave her side.

Finally, after a grueling three hours, I caught sight of the snitch and stole it away from Remus, who was playing the other seeker. We all were thankful to see Mrs. Weasley coming outside with a tray full of lemonade. I smiled at Lara as she handed Ginny her broom. "Thanks for letting me use your broom, Ginny." Lara was starting to feel a bit more comfortable.

"Oh, you're welcome. At least someone gets to use it," Ginny said with a smile, laying her hand on her stomach. I grinned as Neville leaned over and kissed Ginny on the forehead.

"Well, good game, but now it's time to eat dinner and get wound down for bed." Remus put his arm around my shoulders. "How's it going, Harry?"

"All right." I threw my Firebolt with the other brooms. I'll polish it later. We went inside to find the smell of beef stew consuming the house. "Gawd I missed this food." Remus laughed. "Can I ask you something?" I had pulled Remus to a part of the house that was empty. Remus nodded. He looked tired, and then I realized the full moon had just passed. "When I was introducing you all to Lara, I noticed that you and the others were whispering." Remus nodded.

"That's something that Albus is going to have to choose when to tell you." Remus looked past me and saw Mrs. Weasley putting the food on the table. "Listen, Harry. You just need to concern yourself with being safe. If Molly knew I was telling you this, she'd probably kick me out. There's going to be a second attack. We don't know when, but we've heard it from some of our spies. That's why Albus had you come back. At this point we don't know where Voldemort is. We seemed to have lost his trail." I nodded, a knot forming in my throat. It was my 7th year all over again. Anticipation of the upcoming battle was overflowing in me. "We'll talk later, Harry. Molly's got dinner on."

I nodded as Remus walked away. I smiled as Lara came up to me. I pulled her into a tight embrace. "Have I told you recently how much I love you?" I kissed her gently before she could answer.

"Why, yes, Harry. Every time you smile you tell me." She smiled and kissed me again. We let go of one another and I took her hand. We walked into the kitchen and found a seat across from Ron and Hermione and next to Remus. "I think I'm comfortable enough for you to tell them now." Lara found my hand under the table and gave it a small squeeze. I smiled and kissed her cheek.

"Um…Mrs. Weasley, before you serve up this wonderful food, I have something I'd like to say." The table went suddenly quiet. Dumbledore looked at me with a grin. He knew what I was about to say.

"Oh?" Mrs. Weasley set down the dish of fresh baked bread. "Well, go on dear."

I blushed and cleared my throat awkwardly. "Well, it actually has to do with Ron's news this morning." I cleared my throat again as the table stared at me. "I've asked Lara to marry me and she said yes." The whole table of people exploded, just like they had with Ron and Hermione. I couldn't breathe.

After everyone quieted down, we enjoyed a wonderful dinner and then everyone made their way to their rooms. I took Lara's hand and we went for a walk outside. There was a bench down by the edge of the garden and we decided to sit for a while and talk. The stars were bright tonight, and they sparkled off of Lara's perfect green eyes. "You are so beautiful," I said into her ear.

She blushed and leaned against me. "Can I ask you something, Harry?" I stroked her head and nodded. "Can I ask you about you and Hermione?"

My eyes widened. I was not expecting this, but she needed to know. "Of course." I adjusted myself and wrapped my arms around her. My heart ached a little, and I swallowed. It was time Lara knew. "Hermione and I got very close after my battle with Voldemort. I hadn't defeated him, but I weakened him considerably. I was hurt in the process and Hermione stayed with me while I was at St. Mungos. When I got better, I asked Hermione to marry me. She accepted, and we shared an…intimate night. She got pregnant and she was five months along when one of Voldemort's followers attacked our flat. Hermione was hurt and she lost our baby. After that, we just…fell apart." There was a slight pause before I spoke up again. "I mean, we still love each other, just not in the same way."

I heard Lara sniff and she drew a hand to her cheek. Had she been crying? "Wow, that's a really hard situation." She pulled herself out of my grasp and turned to face me. I had never seen her look so beautiful. She looked…different. Her hair was a familiar shade of red and her eyes…I had never seen her eyes so green. Suddenly I realized who she reminded me of. "What's the matter?"

I shook my head in astonishment. "You look so much like…" I paused; I couldn't finish my sentence. This discovery had suddenly left me without a single word or thought in my head...except...

"Your mother?"

I nodded. "Yes, you look like my mother."

A/N: Well, there it is. What did you think?


	6. The Child of Black

Ch. 6 ~ The Child of Black

Hermione's POV

Our Thanksgiving holiday at the Burrow was so wonderful. Seeing everyone again is what made everything seem so much better. Mrs. Weasley made the most perfect meals, as always, and the food seemed to just keep coming…almost like being back at Hogwarts again.

I had to admit, I did miss Hogwarts a little. But Dumbledore's assignment for us to get muggle schooling kept me fresh and excited instead of bored. Now that we were on strict orders to stay at the Burrow "until further notice," the four of us had to work on our schooling over the computer. Of course, they appointed me as being the 'middle-man' of emailing our professors. I had emailed to let them all know that we were unable to get plane tickets back and that we weren't sure when we could. Thankfully they believed us and had made arrangements for us to continue our studies over the computer until we could make it back. "Finished. All of our week's worth of lessons has been sent to our professors." I made myself comfortable on the couch next to Ron.

"Good." Ron released a sigh. "Now maybe we can have a small break." Ron was reading the newest Daily Prophet to see if there was anything on Voldemort. He finished the last page and threw the paper on the end table. "Nothing today, Harry."

Harry smirked from his position in front of the fire. "Good, glad to hear it." I squinted to see what Harry was reading.

"What is that, Harry?" Curiosity was getting the better of me.

"It's some records from Durmstrang." He turned the page. "I'm trying to find Lara's records."

"Why?" Ron and I asked together. Sometimes it felt as if we were twins. No wait…that would be wrong.

"Because I have to know why my fiancée won't tell me her real last name. She already confessed the one she gave us first was wrong." He flipped the page again.

Ron chuckled. "Maybe she's Riddle's or Malfoy's heir." I punched him lightly on the shoulder. "Ow!"

"Be nice."

Harry flipped the page again. "Here it is!" He suddenly sat upright. "Lara Mary Black…" His voice trailed off, and I was shocked.

"Black?" I wondered if he and Ron were thinking the same thing I was. Harry nodded. "Are you sure?" He nodded again.

"The year fits. And the first name index says she's the only Lara." He skipped to the back of the book.

"I didn't know there was such a thing," Ron said.

"Neither did I." Harry was starting to get quiet and his face was getting whiter by the second. I knew his heart was aching. I knew that he was hurt by finding out who Lara was. I know that if Ron had ever done that I would be hurt too. Harry closed the book and set it on the fire ledge. "How….why….how could she…." He stopped as the door opened. Lara and Mrs. Weasley had come back from the store.

"What a mad house. Muggles everywhere." Ron and I stood up to go and help. We both took bags from her and followed them into the kitchen. "Oh, thank you dears. How was your day?"

I set my bag on the counter. "Good. I got our homework sent to the school."

"Oh, good." Lara dropped the armful of bags she had. "I've been so worried about our biology homework." I smiled weakly at her. "What's the matter?"

Ron started to say something, but I grabbed his arm. "Lara…can I talk to you in private?" Ron nodded, kissed me on the cheek and walked back to the couch where Harry still sat, staring into the fire. Lara looked at me, confusion displaying all over her face. "Excuse us, Mrs. Weasley." I took Lara's arm and we went to the front porch.

"'Mione, what's the matter? Is something wrong with Harry?" I just stared at her for a minute. What was I going to say? How was I going to say it?

I sat on the rail of the porch and stared at my shoes. "Lara…Harry found your school records today." Lara dropped her cloak that she had been trying to keep on her shoulders. I looked up to a stunned face.

"He what?"

"Is Sirius your dad?" It was the first thing that came to my mind.

Lara nodded, tears starting to fill her remarkably green eyes. She ran a finger through her curly red hair. "I wasn't allowed to tell you. I wanted to so much…" She was sobbing now, and I couldn't hold back my tears anymore. I guess I was a little hurt too. "You have to believe me that I wanted to tell you."

"Then why didn't you?" Harry had just come outside, Ron behind him. Ron shrugged his shoulders and gave me an apologetic look before coming towards me. I gave him a small smile, wiping my cheeks as dry as I could.

Lara turned and took Harry's hand. "Oh, Harry…I wanted to. Mum made me promise that I wouldn't…as well as Dumbledore."

Harry looked stunned and hurt. "Lara, I don't even know who you really are. How did you expect me to know who I was marrying if you didn't tell me who you were?" He paused, and Lara stood silent. "So, you're really Sirius's daughter?" Lara nodded.

"I didn't know him. Mum told me of him of course, but he was in Azkaban all my life…and then…" She trailed off, finding it hard to finish. I looked at Ron. He was staring at his shoes. Harry swallowed hard. "What was my father like, Harry?" I watched Harry's face as a light seemed to go off in his head. He knew Sirius…and his only daughter didn't. Harry wrapped his arms around her and she began to cry.

"Lara…" Harry couldn't seem to find the right words. I looked at Ron and we smiled at each other. It was time for us to leave. Ron took my hand and I followed him into the house.

"Everything okay, dears?" Mrs. Weasley asked when she spotted us standing by the kitchen door.

"Did you know she was Sirius's daughter?" I couldn't believe Ron had just blurted it out like that.

"Oh, dear." Mrs. Weasley seemed frightened by this question. "Oh my." She turned to look at the clock that would tell her where the rest of the family was. Mr. Weasley was en route home. "Oh dear." She turned and walked up to her room.

"Well, of all the bloody messes, this has to be the worst," Ron mused. He was right. Obviously we had found out something that they didn't want us to know of. What kind of trouble had they gotten us into now? I raised an eyebrow at Ron, who only smiled at me innocently. It was times like these I wished I was a muggle again.

A/N: Well, there it is? What do you think? Never saw that coming, did you? Hehe. So, please read and review…it is much appreciated!


	7. Selfish Ron

A/N: The next three chapters are set around chapter six. I wanted to give each of their POVs in this situation so that you would know what each was thinking.

Ch. 7 ~ Selfish Ron

Ron's POV

Finally, a long holiday. Family, great food. Everything I ever wanted was right here, and I never wanted to leave. Goodbye Hogwarts, goodbye 'muggle college,' hello laziness. Yeah, that was the perfect life for me…if only I could get Hermione to feel the same way. I looked over at her where she had set up her computer and was emailing our assignments to the muggle school. No getting out of that one…Dumbledore insisted we continue from the Burrow. Of all the bloody, insane…anyway…I smiled as Hermione came over and sat on the couch.

"Finished," she said with a smile. "All of our week's worth of lessons has been sent to our professors." She laid her head on my shoulder and I wrapped my arm around her.

"Good." I sighed. "Now maybe we can have a small break." I was reading the newest Daily Prophet to see if there was anything on Voldemort. 35 pages and not a single word on You-Know-Who. "Nothing today, Harry."

Harry smirked from his position in front of the fire. "Good, glad to hear it." He was reading something and Hermione tried to see what it was.

"What is that, Harry?"

"It's some records from Durmstrang." He turned the page. "I'm trying to find Lara's records."

"Why?" Hermione and I asked together. I tried not to laugh at our 'twin' moment.

"Because I have to know why my fiancée won't tell me her last name. She already confessed the one she gave us first was wrong." He flipped the page again.

I chuckled, a disturbing thought coming to mind. Should I verbalize it? Oh, heck, why not? "Maybe she's Riddle's or Malfoy's heir." I received a small punch from Hermione on the shoulder. "Ow!"

"Be nice."

Harry flipped the page again. "Here it is!" He suddenly sat upright. "Lara Mary Black…" His voice trailed off, and I was shocked.

"Black?" Hermione asked, a confused look on her face. I was wondering the same thing. Harry nodded. "Are you sure?" He nodded again.

"The year fits. And the first name index says she's the only Lara." He skipped to the back of the book.

"I didn't know there was such a thing," I said.

"Neither did I." Harry was starting to get quiet and his face was getting whiter by the second. If I knew Harry like I thought I did, he was hurting. I took a quick glance at Hermione. I felt a little guilty that I knew exactly who she was, and Harry didn't know who Lara was. I looked back at Harry as he closed the book and set it on the fire ledge. "How….why….how could she…." He stopped as the door opened. Lara and Mum had just come back from the store.

"What a mad house. Muggles everywhere." Hermione and I stood up to go and help. We both took bags from Mum and followed them into the kitchen. "Oh, thank you dears. How was your day?"

I set my bag on the counter next to Hermione's. "Good. I got our homework sent to the school," Hermione said to Lara.

"Oh, good." Lara dropped the armful of bags she had. "I've been so worried about our biology homework." Hermione smiled weakly at her. "What's the matter?"

I opened my mouth to say something, but Hermione grabbed my arm and I chose to stop. "Lara…can I talk to you in private?" Hermione asked. Yes, this was best. I nodded, kissing Hermione on the cheek. I walked back to the couch where Harry still sat, staring into the fire.

"Hermione and Lara went to talk," I said cautiously, not really sure what Harry's reaction was going to be. I hadn't seen him this quiet since he and Hermione lost their child. "Harry?"

Harry seemed to snap out of his trance and looked up at me. "Where'd they go?"

"Out on the porch, but I don't think we should interrupt. Let Hermione talk to her first." Harry leapt up from the couch.

"Bloody hell, Ron! This is my fiancée, my fiancée who lied to me! What in bloody hell makes you think I'm just going to let her get away with this!" His eyes had turned a dark shade of green, and he looked at the open kitchen door that led to the porch. He went towards it and I followed quickly. This could get bad.

Harry stopped before the door, listening to them to find the right time to make an appearance.

"He what?"

"Is Sirius your dad?"

I had a slight view of Lara, who nodded, tears starting to fill her eyes. She ran a finger through her hair. "I wasn't allowed to tell you. I wanted to so much…" She was sobbing now, and I heard Hermione sniff. Girls. "You have to believe me that I wanted to tell you."

"Then why didn't you?" Harry walked outside. I followed closely behind him, shrugging my shoulders and giving an apologetic look at Hermione. I walked over to stand beside her and she gave me a small smile, wiping her cheeks.

Lara turned and took Harry's hand. "Oh, Harry…I wanted to. Mum made me promise that I wouldn't…as well as Dumbledore."

"Lara, I don't even know who you really are. How did you expect me to know who I was marrying if you didn't tell me who you were?" He paused, and Lara stood silent. "So, you're really Sirius's daughter?" Lara nodded, and I looked down at my shoes. Not exactly pretty, but I didn't want to see what was going on.

"I didn't know him. Mum told me of him of course, but he was in Azkaban all my life…and then…" She trailed off, finding it hard to finish. I saw Hermione look at me out of the corner of my eye. "What was my father like, Harry?" This made my head snap up to watch and a light seemed to go off in Harry's head. He knew Sirius…and his only daughter didn't. Harry wrapped his arms around her and she began to cry.

"Lara…" Harry couldn't seem to find the right words. Hermione looked at me and we smiled at each other. It was time for us to leave. I took Hermione's hand and we went into the house.

"Everything okay, dears?" Mum asked when she spotted us standing by the kitchen door.

"Did you know she was Sirius's daughter?" I asked her. I was a little annoyed that my own mother kept something like that from me.

"Oh, dear." Mum seemed frightened by this question. "Oh my." She turned to look at the clock that would tell her where the rest of the family was. Dad was en route home. "Oh dear." She turned and walked up to her room.

"Well, of all the bloody messes, this has to be the worst," I mused. Obviously we had found out something that they didn't want us to know of. Hermione raised an eyebrow at me and I smiled at her innocently. I couldn't wait to get her alone so I could have my way with her.

A/N: Just like Ron to be thinking of Hermione like that in desperate times, huh? Anyway, tell me what you think, please?


	8. Perfect Sense

A/N: Here's chapter 8. Don't forget, this chapter and the next is still set when Harry and the other's find out about Lara. Sorry to draw it out that way, but I felt it best. Enjoy!

Ch. 8 ~ Perfect Sense

Lara's POV

Our Thanksgiving holiday at the Burrow was over, and we were on orders from Dumbledore to stay put. But this gave me a chance to get to know Harry and the Weasley's so much better before I married him. I had a feeling the older adults in the house, or who frequently came to visit knew exactly who I was. I could only hope that they didn't tell Harry before I had a chance to. Mrs. Weasley had asked me to join her in going to the store, and I accepted.

The store was so busy we had a hard time finding everything we needed. Finding enough food to feed as many people as were fed in the Weasley house was a nightmare. I wanted a small family with an occasional visit to Ron's. Being part of a large family was something I just wasn't used to.

Mrs. Weasley pulled the car into the driveway and we grabbed as many of the bags as we could. My arms were extremely weighed down as I trudged up to the door. The house finally seemed quiet for once. Every one was gone except for Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Mrs. Weasley pulled her wand carefully out of her pocket and pointed it at the door. The door popped open and we walked inside.

"What a mad house. Muggles everywhere." Ron and Hermione stood up to help us. They each took bags from us and followed into the kitchen. "Oh, thank you dears. How was your day?"

"Good. I got our homework sent to the school." Hermione set her bags down.

"Oh, good." I dropped the armful of bags I had. What a relief. "I've been so worried about our biology homework." Hermione smiled weakly at me; something was wrong. "What's the matter?"

Ron started to say something, but Hermione grabbed his arm. "Lara…can I talk to you in private?" Ron nodded, kissing Hermione on the cheek and walked back to the couch where Harry still sat, staring into the fire. I looked at Hermione, confused. "Excuse us, Mrs. Weasley." She took my arm and we went to the porch.

"'Mione, what's the matter? Is something wrong with Harry?" She just stared at me for a minute, many thoughts and questions displaying on her face. Oh god…had they found out about Sirius somehow?

Hermione sat on the rail of the porch and stared at her shoes. "Lara…Harry found your school records today." I dropped the cloak that I had been trying to keep on my shoulders. Hermione finally looked up at me.

"He what?"

"Is Sirius your dad?"

I nodded, tears starting to fill my eyes. I ran a finger through my hair. "I wasn't allowed to tell you. I wanted to so much…" I was sobbing now, and Hermione started to cry too. Her face showed pain and hurt. I did not mean for it to happen this way. "You have to believe me that I wanted to tell you."

"Then why didn't you?" Harry had just come outside, Ron behind him. Ron shrugged his shoulders and gave Hermione an apologetic look and made his way to her. She gave him a small smile, wiping her cheeks.

I turned and took Harry's hand. "Oh, Harry…I wanted to. Mum made me promise that I wouldn't…as well as Dumbledore."

Harry looked stunned and hurt. "Lara, I don't even know who you really are. How did you expect me to know who I was marrying if you didn't tell me who you were?" He paused. I didn't know what to say. "So, you're really Sirius's daughter?" I nodded, my heart aching a little.

"I didn't know him. Mum told me of him of course, but he was in Azkaban all my life…and then…" I trailed off; I couldn't finish my sentence. Harry swallowed hard. "What was my father like, Harry?" Harry's face brightened as a light seemed to go off in his head. He wrapped his arms around me and I cried into his shoulders.

"Lara…" Harry couldn't seem to find the right words. I let out a deep sigh as we were suddenly left alone on the porch

"I'm so sorry, Harry." It was all I seemed to be able to say. No words could express the hurt I felt from knowing that I would never know my father, and that the man I loved knew him. Even though it was only a short time, he had more time with my father than I did. A part of me hated Harry for that, but I loved him so much more.

Harry stroked my hair and brought my chin up to look into my eyes. A tear ran down my cheek and Harry wiped it away. "I don't want anymore crying, Lara Black." I closed my eyes. It felt so good to finally hear him say my last name. "I forgive you for not telling me about Sirius." Harry leaned forward and kissed me softly on the lips. My whole world was right here. I may not have my father, and my mother may not be able to care for me anymore, but my life was perfect just the way it was. When I was in his arms, everything was perfect. "I love you, Lara."

"I love you, too." We spent the next 20 minutes holding each other silently. I know I was thinking about Sirius, and I'm sure Harry was too. Suddenly, we both had something more in common, and it all made perfect sense that we were together, forever in our love.


	9. Harry's Heartache

A/N: This is the final chapter in the sequence and then we'll move on with the story. Hopefully this will give you an idea where the four are standing on the issue with Lara.

Chapter 9 ~ Harry's Heartache

Harry's POV

I looked at my watch. It was four in the morning. Nobody would be at the ministry for an hour. I pulled my cloak out of my trunk and walked outside as carefully as I could. Once I was a decent distance from the house, I wrapped my invisibility cloak around me and apparated to the Ministry of Magic.

I knew the library was on the fourth floor. Once there I pulled out my wand and pointed it at the door. Nothing happened. "Stubborn one, eh? Alohomora." The door quietly slid open and I walked inside. Thankfully, each section of books was labeled. I went to the section marked "School Records" and began looking for Durmstrang. I grabbed about ten of them, just to be safe. I made sure I locked the library door before apparating back to the Burrow. 5:15. I would have just enough time to get back to the room before Mrs. Weasley called us for a 5:30 breakfast.

The morning seemed to go by slowly. I was thankful the majority of the house emptied after lunch. I had the Durmstrang books hidden below my cloak in front of the fire. Now to find a way to get Lara out of the house. At the moment we were sharing Mr. Weasley's lounge chair and Ron was staring into the flames. Hermione was at her computer dealing with our homework.

"Lara, dear." Mrs. Weasley came into the room with her cloak and Mr. Weasley's car keys in hand. "Would you accompany me at the store? We're completely out of food again."

Lara smiled at me and I kissed her forehead. "Of course." Nice timing, Mrs. Weasley.

"Good, we won't be long."

As soon as I knew the car had left I sat on the floor and began reading through Durmstrang's records. Two hours went by and I still hadn't found anything. I had a feeling I was getting close though. I barely noticed when Hermione got up from her computer.

"Finished," she said proudly. "All of our week's worth of lessons have been sent to our professors." She sat on the couch next to Ron.

"Good. Now maybe we can have a small break." Ron was reading the newest Daily Prophet to see if there was anything on Voldemort. I saw him throw it on the end table out of the corner of my eye. "Nothing today, Harry."

I gave him a small smile, my concentration on the records. "Good, glad to hear it."

I saw Hermione trying to see what I was reading. "What is that, Harry?"

Well, I might as well tell her. "It's some records from Durmstrang." I turned the page. "I'm trying to find Lara's records."

"Why?" Ron and Hermione asked together. Okay, that was getting a bit disturbing the way they thought alike.

"Because I have to know why my fiancée won't tell me her last name. She already confessed the first one she gave us was wrong." I flipped the page again.

Ron chuckled. "Maybe she's Riddle's or Malfoy's heir." That would be my worst nightmare. Hermione punched Ron on the shoulder. "Ow!"

"Be nice."

I rolled my eyes and flipped the page again. My eyes widened as I laid my eyes on Lara's name. "Here it is!" I quickly sat up to get better light on the page. I read the name three times to myself. Lara Mary Black, daughter of Virginia and Sirius Black. What? "Lara Mary Black…" I trailed off. I couldn't even finish my sentence.

"Black?" Hermione asked. I nodded. "Are you sure?" I nodded again. No, Hermione, I'm lying.

I looked back down to the book. "The year fits." I flipped to the back of the book. What's this? A first name index? L…La…Lara…the only one. "And the first name index says she's the only Lara."

"I didn't know there was such a thing," Ron said.

"Neither did I." I felt the blood leave my face. I hadn't felt this much pain since Sirius died. Or since I found out the truth about my parents. How could she do this to me? Didn't she realize this changed our future? How could I marry her if she can't tell me who her parents were? This girl was my life, and she had just made the biggest mistake of her life. I slammed the book shut and set it on the fire ledge with the other books. "How…why…how could she…" I didn't get a chance to verbalize my frustrated thoughts as the door opened. Lara and Mrs. Weasley had just come home.

"What a mad house. Muggles everywhere." I sat quietly as Ron and Hermione went to help them.

I couldn't get that line in the book out of my head…Lara Mary Black, daughter of Virginia and Sirius Black. Virginia Black? Sirius was married? Now all of a sudden I didn't even know who my godfather was. Why were there so many secrets? And why would Dumbledore keep them from me? My thoughts were interrupted when Ron came back and sat on the couch.

"Hermione and Lara went to talk." I didn't move, and I didn't say anything. "Harry?"

I shook my head slightly and looked up at Ron. "Where'd they go?"

"Out on the porch, but I don't think we should interrupt. Let Hermione talk to her first." I leapt up. I was not going to stand for this.

"Bloody hell, Ron! This is my fiancée, my fiancée who lied to me! What in bloody hell makes you think I'm just going to let her get away with this!" Ron looked at me like he had seen a ghost. I had put a little fear into my best friend, but I didn't care. I looked at the open kitchen door. It was now or never.

I stopped just before the door where they could see me…I was waiting for a good time to enter. "He what?" Lara was saying.

"Is Sirius your dad?"

I heard Lara sniffle. "I wasn't allowed to tell you. I wanted to so much…" I heard another sniff, but whether it came from Lara I didn't know. "You have to believe me that I wanted to tell you." This was my chance.

"Then why didn't you?" I asked. Ron shrugged his shoulders and gave Hermione an apologetic look and made his way to her. She gave him a small smile, wiping her cheeks.

Lara turned and took my hand. "Oh, Harry…I wanted to. Mum made me promise that I wouldn't…as well as Dumbledore."

I gave Lara a disappointed and hurt look. "Lara, I don't even know who you really are. How did you expect me to know who I was marrying if you didn't tell me who you were?" I paused, waiting for some kind of response, but she didn't answer. "So, you're really Sirius's daughter?" She nodded.

"I didn't know him. Mum told me of him of course, but he was in Azkaban all my life…and then…" She trailed off. I swallowed hard. Suddenly it hit me that she didn't know her father, and I had. Even though it was only a short time, I still knew him. Way to go, Harry. "What was my father like, Harry?" I shook my head at her in disbelief. I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her into a deep hug, allowing her to cry into my shoulder.

"Lara…" I couldn't seem to find the right words. She let out a deep sigh as we were suddenly left alone on the porch.

"I'm so sorry, Harry." It was all she seemed to be able to say. I felt so guilty about all this, but questions still played in my mind.

I stroked her hair and brought her chin up to look into her eyes. A tear ran down her cheek and I wiped it away. "I don't want anymore crying, Lara Black." She closed her eyes, a small smile of relief displaying on her beautiful face. "I forgive you for not telling me about Sirius." I leaned forward and kissed her softly on the lips. My whole world was right here. I may not have my parents, or Sirius, and even though I had so many questions about all of this, my life was perfect just the way it was. When she was in my arms nothing else mattered. "I love you, Lara."

"I love you, too." We spent the next 20 minutes holding each other silently. I knew she was thinking about Sirius, and I was too. Suddenly, we both had something more in common. But my next step in this whole mess was to pay a little surprise reunion to Hogwarts. And right before the Christmas holiday too.

A/N: Dun dun dun…hehe.


	10. Hogwarts Express

A/N: Okay, I know this one's kinda short...but it's really just a filler chapter for lack of not knowing what else to write. Anyway, enjoy!

Ch. 10 ~ Hogwarts Express

Hermione's POV

~ Hermione's Dream ~

"Hermione!" I jumped as Ginny stormed in the door. I turned to face her. She was so beautiful in her dress. It was an aqua color, subtle yet bright. It was a simple, off-the-shoulder, full-length bell-like skirt with ruffles down the front. Her red hair was pulled up into a bun with two ringlets framing each side of her face. Her green eyes sparkled. "Sorry I'm late, but Neville wouldn't stop kissing me when I told him about the new baby."

I smiled at her. "It's okay, let's just go." Ginny nodded at me, a grin on her face. Well, this was it. This was my last moment single. In a half hour I would be joining Ginny on the married side. I shook my thoughts out of my head as Ginny pulled me out of the room. I heard the music coming from the chapel when I spotted my father waiting patiently by the door.

"Good luck, 'Mione." Ginny took her place in the ceremony.

"Oh, my beautiful princess." I smiled at my father as he kissed my cheek. "I'm so proud of you, Hermione…Hermione…Hermione… Hermione… Hermione… Hermione… Hermione… Hermione…"

~ End ~

"Hermione…Hermione!" I slowly opened my eyes and found Ginny staring down at me. "'Bout time you woke up! Everyone's waiting for you!"

It took me a minute to realize where I was and what day it was. I was still in the Burrow and it was a week before Christmas. It was also the second to last day before Hogwarts' Christmas holiday, and we were supposed to catch a special run of the Hogwarts Express in 45 minutes. "Oh! I'm sorry!" I leapt out of bed and Ginny, although still very pregnant, helped me get ready.

"'Bout time girls," Ron teased as we came down the stairs. Ginny went to Neville's side and he kissed her on the cheek. "Well, now that we're all together, we have a train to catch." Ron kissed me and the group of us headed out the door.

When we got to Kings Cross, we decided to split up. It would probably look suspicious if eight people suddenly disappeared behind platforms 9 and 10. Harry had arranged for the special train run, though I don't think Dumbledore knew we were coming. Maybe he did, I wasn't sure.

We finally got on the train and it began its long journey to the Hogwarts station. It felt weird to be here, but it also felt very comfortable. I smiled at Ron as he pulled me into a compartment and put a Disillusionment Charm on it. "Why, Ronald Weasley, what is this now?" He only pulled me close to him and kissed me passionately. I gave in for a minute, but pulled away reluctantly. "Ron, it's a long trip…let's talk."

Ron gave me a disappointed look but nodded. We sat down in the compartment. "So, did Harry talk to you at all about this whole Lara thing?"

Ron seemed a bit uncomfortable about the subject matter, but he talked anyway. "Yes, he's hurt by it obviously. But he loves Lara so it will work itself out." He smiled at me and kissed my hand.

"I don't know; I can't help but worry about him. I mean, Lara's a different person now, don't you think?"

Ron nodded. "Yeah, she seems that way to me too." Ron suddenly got very quiet.

"Ron, do you think she might be who she says she isn't?" I suddenly remembered the first few minutes we were back at the Burrow. Harry introduced Lara and the older adults whispered. "I mean, your Mum obviously knows who she is, and she didn't exactly seem thrilled that we had found out. And Remus won't talk to Harry right now, what is that about?"

Ron shook his head. "I don't know, Hermione. All I know is that we have to trust Lara until we find out otherwise. Not for us, for Harry's sake." I nodded. Yes, of course I trusted Lara, for Harry's sake. But I couldn't help but worry that there was a chance she was going to hurt Harry. "Let's not talk about it now, Hermione. Let's just enjoy the ride." He gave me a devious grin and I couldn't help but smile.

Ron leaned over and kissed me. We had no idea how close we were to Hogwarts station, but it didn't matter. We were together and we were going to enjoy each other for the second time since we got together. I kissed him back, wrapping my arms around him and he pushed me back onto the seat. We each let go of our emotions and only stopped when we felt the train slowing down. We were back at Hogwarts station.

A/N: Okay, it was kind of dull, but it wasn't that bad, was it?


	11. Hogsmeade

Ch. 11 ~ Hogsmeade

Ron's POV

Ahhh…back again to wonderful Hogsmeade. Okay, so I'm exaggerating. I was just glad we were out for a while. The snow, as always, was thick and covered the hills and streets around the town. Our breath could be seen it was so cold. Lovely, just bloody lovely. I smiled at Hermione as she desperately blew on her hands to warm them up. "Well, what do you want to do first, Love? Seeing's how everyone else is doing their own thing."

Hermione shrugged her shoulders and linked her arm with mine. We had just made our first visit to Honeydukes and were walking around in circles it seemed like. "Why don't we go visit The Three Broomsticks and get a butter beer?" I shrugged. We were already past it, considering we past it when we first got here. I was going to be lazy and wouldn't go back there.

"Couldn't we just go to someplace on this side of town?" Hermione nodded.

"All right, let's go get something at Madam Puddifoot's then." It wasn't my first choice but I was kinda hungry and I knew from experience that too many sweets would only hurt me in the long run. When we got to Madam Puddifoot's the place was packed. In fact, there were at least four couples that I could see waiting to sit down...and from the looks on their faces I had decided they'd been waiting for a while. "Well," I said, closing the door as we walked back down the street, "that was a nightmare."

"I know...so can we go get butter beers then?" Hermione gave me a sheepish, innocent-like grin. I smiled at her. How could I resist that? I nodded and we walked hand in hand through the crowd. It was starting to get dark and people were rushing to get their business done. When we finally made it back to the Three Broomsticks, I held the door for her.

"Why thank you, Ronald. My hero," she mused. I rolled my eyes and looked about the full tables. It was a night for business obviously...this place was full too. "Let's go to that table in the back," Hermione said in my ear so I had a chance at hearing her. I nodded and she led me through the bustling crowd to the table we usually sat in on our trips here from Hogwarts. I ordered two butter beers and slid into the booth next to her. It was nice being here with just her for once. If only I had been so smart while in school...

After about ten minutes of trying to talk, we gave up and just sat silently drinking our butter beers. I got my amusement from watching the door opening and closing and one person after another leaving and entering. My eyes widened as a familiar face came through the door. "Hermione, look."

She turned her focus to the door and tipped her head when she spotted who I was talking about. "What's Lupin and Tonks doing here?" I shrugged my shoulders and we watched as they made their way towards our table. I pulled Hermione into a kiss to try and hide and listened as they took stools at the bar near our table. "Thanks for the hideout, Ron..." I just grinned and turned my focus to Lupin and Tonks.

"Rosmerta! Two butter beers, please!" Lupin called.

She nodded and slid them across the counter. "What are you doing around these parts, Remus?" She seemed to want to ignore Tonks. Course, I wouldn't blame her, considering Tonks was sporting Neon green hair at the moment.

"We've just come from a meeting with Dumbledore," Lupin went on. "Have you heard the news?" Madam Rosmerta shook her head. "About Lara Black?"

Madam Rosmerta looked as though she were trying to place the name with a face. "Red hair, green eyes? Daughter of that little Virginia girl, right?" Lupin nodded. "Okay, I remember her...but we never saw much of her after Virginia left. How old was the girl?"

"She would've been about three or four." Lupin took a drink of his beer and leaned over the counter. I strained to hear what they were talking about, but with all the other racket of people it wasn't easy. I could sure use a pair of extendable ears about now. "Anyway, she met up with Harry a few months ago...and just like he was supposed to he proposed." Madam Rosmerta looked a bit shocked now. I was curious myself. Supposed to?

"You mean to say that one of Trelawney's predictions is actually coming true?"

"Oh, no," Tonks interrupted, "it's not a prediction...oh no no....it's far from a prediction. It's only a part of the prophecy." Tonks grinned and practically drank down the whole glass of beer.

"I think you've said quite enough, Tonks," Lupin scolded, looking a bit stern. "Listen, Rosmerta, I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone about this. Oh, and your guest you've been expecting will be arriving in the morning." Lupin stood and began to leave, pulling Tonks off of her seat.

"You mean to say that he really is alive?" Rosmerta was even more shocked now. Lupin only nodded and drug Tonks out by the arm...much to her protest. Rosmerta wiped her brow with her apron. "I don't believe that Black...how does he do it?" She moved on to continue her work, and I looked at Hermione, in shock.

"Did you hear what I just heard?" Hermione nodded...a stunned, confused, hurt look on her face. "Do you think they were talking about Sirius?"

Hermione shook her head but never took her eyes of the door. "How could they? As far as we know, he's dead." I looked at the door myself at that point. Yes, as far as we know, he was...but I couldn't shake the feeling that there were yet more secrets that were unrevealed to us...and especially to Harry. Harry, he had to know. It was time we headed for the inn.

A/N: I know it's a little short...but I'm building here....! What did you think? Please R/R! I welcome any criticism too!


	12. Breakfast at the Hogs Head

A/N: Well, here it is! The newest chapter. Actually, this chapter is kind of a shock to me. This wasn't my original intention of where this was going to go, but it fits and I like it…so enjoy!

Ch. 12 ~ Breakfast at The Hog's Head

Lara's POV

It was a bright and early morning. I was just starting to wake up even though I had already been awake for about an hour and a half. As much as I loved Harry, 4:00 was too early to get up and I think he's crazy. I smiled as Ron and Hermione came down the inn stairs. We were sitting in a corner booth waiting for the others to come down. We had made this trip as a group. It was the four of us, Fred and George, and Ginny and Neville. "Good morning." I smiled. Looking closer at their faces I realized they had a rather odd look about them.

"Morning. Harry, could we uh…talk alone for a minute?" Ron asked as Hermione slid in the booth. I tipped my head at her looking for an answer but she only gave me a half smile. Harry gave me a look and kissed my cheek.

"Sure mate, but make it quick. We don't want to get a late start to Hogwarts." He slid out of the booth and went to the other side of the bar.

"Pssst. Lara," came a whispered voice behind me.

"Yes, George? What is it?" I turned to face him. He had a rather devious grin on his face.

"You interested in knowing what they're talking about?"

"Of course I am, but I respect their privacy."

"Right, well, if you want to hear, you can borrow our ear," said Fred.

"You're ear?" I asked, a bit taken aback.

"No." Hermione was now standing beside the other four's table. Her arms were crossed across her chest and she glared at the twins. "She said she respected their privacy, now lay off!"

"Yes, mummy!" said Fred and George simultaneously. I saw Ginny and Neville chuckle. I smiled and turned back as Hermione sat back down.

"Do you know what's going on?" I was starting to get a little concerned about things. Deep down I had a feeling that this spur-of-the-moment trip to Hogwarts had other reasons. But what, I didn't know.

Hermione nodded. "I do, but I can't say. That's for Harry to tell you." She blushed and pushed both of her hands under the table. Her eyes sparkled a bit more than normal this morning. She was keeping something from me.

"Okay, change of subject." I crossed my arms over my chest. "What's up with you?"

Hermione widened her eyes at me. She blushed again and leaned over the table. I leaned closer as she began. "I'll tell you but you can't say anything to anyone. I haven't even told Ron yet and he should be the first to know. I only found out yesterday, but it's getting up the nerve to tell him…" She trailed off of her babbling for a moment to blush more. I waited patiently for her to continue. "Promise?" I nodded. "Ron and I are going to be parents."

I dropped my jaw. I was literally speechless. "You're…?" She nodded as Harry and Ron came back to the table. She placed a 'shush' finger over her mouth as our breakfast arrived at the table. "Yum, looks good."

Harry nodded and we all began eating. I never even thought about asking what Ron and Harry had been talking about. I trusted Harry enough to tell me when he was ready. I wasn't totally sure I wanted to know anyway because Harry seemed unusually quiet again.

We spent about a half an hour at breakfast talking about random things. I kept waiting for Hermione to share her news with Ron and Harry, but she never did. I kept smiling at her. Ron was beginning to think I was going nutty. "What are you smiling at?" Ron finally asked. Curiosity always kills the cat. I chuckled as Hermione glared at me.

"Yeah, I was kinda wondering the same thing," Harry asked.

Hermione sighed. "Okay, fine. I'll tell you." I quickly put on a straight face. She was going to do it now? Well, have at it, glad it's not me. "Ron, I've been trying my hardest to get up the courage to tell you this. I've known since yesterday, but somehow I always got tongue-tied when I tried." Ron was now sporting a worried look on his face. That's a nice look for you Ron. I chuckled to myself at this thought. Harry looked at me confused. I only smiled at him. "I found out something yesterday that's going to change our lives forever…"

She was cut off by the other four joining us. "What's going on?" Ginny looked at Ron and Hermione and then at me and Harry.

"Hermione's about to tell me some life-changing news." Ron never took his eyes off of her once. Ginny gasped. It was as if she instantly knew what Hermione was about to say.

"You're not!" Ginny exclaimed. Every one of us turned to look at her. "Hermione! Tell me you're not! Mum will kill Ron!" Hermione blushed a nice cherry color before turning her attention back to Ron.

"Actually, I am, Ginny," she said, staring into Ron's eyes.

"You're what? I'm getting worried now, Hermione…why is Mum going to kill me?"

Ginny cleared her throat to get Ron's attention. He turned at her with a start and began to get very pale as she patted her pregnant belly. The others went completely silent and I just stared at Ron. He turned back to her, as white as a ghost now. "You're pregnant?" Hermione just nodded sheepishly.

"Boy are you dead," Fred and George said in unison.

"Thanks a lot." Ron glared at his brothers.

"Are you okay?" Hermione asked.

Ron nodded as he drew Hermione into a hug. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"Right, well….we'll wait outside." Ginny pushed her brothers along. Neville followed closely behind her.

Harry turned to me. We caught each other's eyes. It was a bit creepy the way he was looking at me. I knew he was waiting for me to say the same thing, but he wouldn't come out and say that. I only smiled and shook my head. Neither of us said a word, but we understood exactly what the other meant. This moment of silence was interrupted by a scream outside.

"That was Ginny!" Ron leapt out of the booth and ran for the door. The rest of us quickly followed. "What happened?"

Neville was pacing back and forth. "Oh dear, oh my, oh dear, oh my," was the only thing he seemed to be able to say.

"Ginny's gone into labor," Fred stated.

"Oh!" Harry looked up the street towards the road that led to Hogwarts. "Well, the closest person to get her to is Madam Pomfrey. Come on, let's get a move on." And with that Ron, Harry, Fred, and George began carrying Ginny up the road through Hogsmeade. Hermione and I were left to seeing that Neville stayed on his own two feet. He was very near shock. I had a feeling this was going to be a long day…


	13. Hogwarts Reunion

A/N: The remainder of the story is from Harry's POV, so don't be looking to see who's POV it's in. I will not state it the rest of the chapters, as it's not too hard to remember it's Harry speaking.

Ch. 13 ~ Hogwarts Reunion

I took in a deep breath. Ginny's arm was about to choke me and the cold air that surrounded Hogwarts wasn't helping. This wasn't exactly my idea of getting to Hogwarts. "Ginny! Hold still!" I yelled at her, trying to brace her as she wiggled in pain.

Ginny turned her head and glared at me. "Well, I'm sorry! I'd like to see you go through this hell, you bloody git!!!!" Ron chuckled on the other side of her. "You!" She whipped her face to him. "You did this to Hermione! See what hell you're going to put the woman you love through!? How dare you!!!"

We decided it was time for all of us to shut up. It seemed a life time before we finally made it to the front doors. Everyone should've been at breakfast. Fred let go of Ginny and ran to open the door. I had gotten my first whiff of that familiar smell of stone. I was home again. "Okay, let's get to the hospital wing. Hermione, go get Madam Pomfrey. They should still be at breakfast." I heard Hermione's footsteps walk up to the doubled doors that led to the Great Hall. The sound of students talking entered the hall as she opened the door, and then silence. "Guess she got their attention," I chuckled to Ron. Ron smiled as we headed for the hospital wing.

Ron and I sat quietly on the far end of the hospital wing. Neville paced nervously back and fourth, pausing every few minutes to shutter at Ginny's screams of pains. Madam Pomfrey was waiting patiently for the right time. Fred and George had gone for a walk through the halls to see if they could remember where the secret passageways were. And just like girls, Lara and Hermione stood by Ginny's side, holding her hands. Neville took a deep breath as he carefully sat down.

"Tired of pacing?" Ron asked. Neville nodded.

"My feet hurt. I'm a nervous wreck." Neville ran a sweaty hand through his hair. Ron's face was slowly getting whiter and whiter by the second.

"Why's she screaming so much?"

"It's a painful thing, Ron." Not that I knew from experience. Of course it was…it had to be…why else would she be screaming like that?

"Hermione's going to be like this too?" Ron looked at the back of Hermione's head.

"Yep, that she will, mate." Ron swallowed hard and it was all I could do not to laugh.

"Hello, Mr. Potter," said an eerily familiar voice from the doorway of the hospital wing. I turned to the smiling face of Albus Dumbledore. "Welcome back to Hogwarts," he said. "Mr. Weasley, Mr. Longbottom." They both nodded their heads at him and Dumbledore turned to the three girls on the other side of the room. I watched as he glided across the floor. "Ms. Granger, how are things going?"

"Anytime now, Professor, anytime." She quickly turned her attention back to Ginny.

Dumbledore smiled at Ginny, who was in between contractions at the moment. "Ginny, welcome back. Would you mind if I borrowed these people for a minute?" Ginny opened her sleepy eyes and blinked at Dumbledore.

"Of course, Professor, but please leave Neville."

"Of course. We will be just outside," he said to Madam Pomfrey. She nodded and stood to go by Ginny's side. "Neville, see you soon." Neville nodded insanely as he walked up to Ginny's side. He flinched as Ginny glared at him. "Come along." Ron, Hermione, Lara, and I stood up and followed Dumbledore out into the hall. He turned to face us once we were a few feet away.

"Nice to see you, Professor. Did you hear our good news?" Ron wrapped his arm around Hermione's shoulders. Dumbledore looked Hermione in the eyes.

"I see it won't be too long before you are in Ginny's condition." Hermione blushed with a quick nod and a smile. "My congratulations to you. I'm afraid this puts a damper on our original plans."

"What are you talking about, Professor?" I asked carefully. I was tired of this playing around and beating around the bush. I wanted some answers.

"Well, as far as I've been told, Remus has already talked to you about the facts that we've gotten from a few of our spies?" I nodded. Yeah, there was a war coming, so what? Nothing new. "It seems as though he has moved the attack date to December 24." I swallowed hard. Christmas Eve? That wasn't that far off. "And, we were counting on Ms. Granger to take up the slack where were would miss young Ginny." Hermione blushed and looked at the stone floor. "Don't worry dear. Our secret weapon is well enough. In fact, he's here. And he'd like to speak with Harry and Lara privately for a moment." I was shocked. Secret weapon? I was about to ask him when Neville ran out of the hospital wing. Damned interruptions.

"Guys, it's time!!! Come on!!! I'm a nervous wreck!" He ran back in without another word.

The five of us looked at each other for a moment before turning down the hall and rejoining Ginny and Neville at her bedside. Her face was twisted and contorted in pain. It was all I could do to look at her. Madam Pomfrey was waiting patiently at the end of Ginny's bed. Why was she so calm?

I took a glance at Ron and Hermione. Both of them were white faced and horrified. And to think….I almost did this to her. This should've been me and Hermione by now. It was my fault I lost her. If I hadn't slipped when I threw that curse at Voldemort, we wouldn't be here. Hermione and I would be in a flat somewhere, playing with our child. And then I looked at Lara. She was now the new love of my life. It was all okay that I slipped and Hermione and I broke it off. Lara turned her beautiful green eyes to me, and smiled. I smiled back as Ginny let out a huge, painful scream.

"Congratulations kids." Madam Pomfrey put the scissors down and held a wrapped bundle in her arms. "It's a beautiful girl. Red hair and all." Ginny let out a sigh of relief and relaxed on the bed. Neville leaned over and kissed Ginny's forehead as Madam Pomfrey placed the bundle in Ginny's arms. She smiled as she looked at her baby. We all gathered close around to get a look at her.

"Have you chosen a name for her?" Dumbledore asked. Ginny and Neville jumped at his voice. "Oh, surely you didn't think I'd miss this for anything."

Ginny smiled and shook her head. "Of course not, Professor." She paused to look at Neville. "You want to tell them or should I?"

"You tell them dear." He took the baby from her.

Ginny nodded, laying her head back on the pillow. "Lillian Molly Longbottom." My stomach dropped and my heart sunk. Lillian? That was my mother's name. She chose my mother's name? But why? "Is that okay, Harry?" she asked me nervously. I shook my head back to reality.

"Ye…yes, of course. I'm honored." I was; I really was. It was just a bit of a shock is all. I smiled as Lara came up to me. "Hello."

"Hi. Are you okay?"

I nodded. "Yes, I'm fine." I pulled her closer into a tight hug. We stood that way, silent for a few moments. Everyone else was quiet too, as they were all googly-eyed over the baby. I didn't let go of her until we heard footsteps outside in the hall. Lara tipped sideways a little to look over my shoulders as the doors opened. Everyone else but me turned as well. I was watching Lara's face. She was turning white. "Lara? What's the matter?" She just shook her head and stared at the door. Everyone else was staring in shock too. I was almost afraid to turn around. Who on earth could return that reaction from everyone, especially Lara? She didn't even know anyone we did except for the Weasley's and a few of the order members. I took a deep breath and slowly turned around. I almost fainted as I faced the door. "Bloody hell, it can't be…………"

A/N: DUN DUN DUN....hehe, Any ideas on who it is????


	14. Black Reunion

A/N: SPOILERS TO BOOK FIVE!!!

Ch. 14 ~ Black Reunion

"Hello, Harry." No, it couldn't be. He was dead. I saw him… "Virginia, is this Lara?" The woman beside him nodded. "Well, I finally get to meet her." He began to take a few steps forward.

"Now wait a minute!" I shouted. I didn't initially intend to shout, but I was about fed up. "I want some answers! What the bloody hell is going on here!?" Dumbledore cleared his throat. I looked over and he had a sleeping baby in his arms. "Sorry, Professor, but I'm a bit confused by now, obviously."

Dumbledore stood up and gently handed the baby back to her mother. "As you should be, Harry." He turned, pulling his robes tighter and walked over to us. "There have been a lot of secrets kept from a lot of people that they shouldn't have been. Especially from you, Harry; and Lara, too." Lara looked at Dumbledore with a confused look on her face. "But, seeing as how the people who don't know about it are here," he paused to look about the room, "it's time the truth finally came out." He turned to the door way. "Please, let's all have a seat." He waved his hand around the room and conjured a table with chairs around it. I reluctantly sat in a chair, Lara beside me. She reached under the table and took my hand. She was hurting, and I squeezed her hand in reassurance. "Harry, do you remember when you found the room at the Ministry with your prophecy in it?" I nodded. Of course I remembered. How the bloody hell could I forget? "There was a prophecy that went along with it. It was not found with that one because it was not in that room."

"Where was it if it wasn't there?" Hermione asked, finally speaking up. She was the first one out of us to speak…besides me of course.

"I was the secret keeper for it," the woman named Virginia spoke up. "Oh, Lara, I'm so sorry I never told you." Suddenly I realized who she was. This was Lara's mother. Lara just stared at the table. She hadn't been able to look at either one of them.

"What does the prophecy say, Professor?"

"Well, Ron, the prophecy has to do with young Harry here; and Lara too. 'In the 21st year lives will change…Soul's will unite, and reunite…War, and happiness will be present…Destiny will take control, and those destined to be together will find one another…Those destined will never be apart…one will not die so long as the other is alive…' You see, Harry…the first prophecy, 'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches…Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies…And the Dark Lord will mark him as equal, But he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives…The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…' was not totally complete. After you slipped and Voldemort got away, Professor Trelawney came to have a chat with me. It was then she gave me the prophecy that she, up until that point, had been keeping secret." He paused.

"Professor, could you repeat the prophecy again please?" Just like Hermione, she had a quill and tablet in front of her and she was taking notes.

"'In the 21st year lives will change…'" Dumbledore began.

"Meaning the 21st year after the seventh month dies?" Hermione asked.

"Precisely, Miss Granger."

"Okay, continue."

"'Soul's will unite, and reunite…War, and happiness will be present…Destiny will take control, and those destined to be together will find one another…Those destined will never be apart…one will not die so long as the other survives…'"

Hermione's face lit up like a light had gone off in her head. "Of course! It all makes sense now!"

"What on earth are you talking about?" I was starting to get even more annoyed about this.

"Everything makes sense now. Harry, Voldemort couldn't kill you because Lara was still alive. He would've had to kill her first!"

"Excuse me?" Lara finally spoke.

"And I was attacked when I was pregnant because I was with Harry, not Ron. And…" Hermione stopped, looking up at Virginia, "you were still alive when Sirius…"

"That's right, Hermione," Dumbledore went on. "When Prof. Trelawney revealed the rest of the prophecy, I went on a little journey…in search of Virginia, who we all thought had been killed when James and Lily were killed. Of course, Harry was still alive, so I knew Virginia's daughter was too." Okay, now I was really confused, but I kept quiet and let him talk. "I made a visit to the last known place of Virginia. And I had found young Lara, living alone. Her mother had gone away on a special job assignment for St. Mungos. She was sending Lara the necessary means for Lara to live on. I had asked her if she knew where her mother was, but she couldn't tell me. It took me three years before I finally discovered Virginia, hiding away in a house in Surrey."

"Surrey?" This was quite a shock to me…

"Yes, Harry, in Surrey. It was the least likely place for anyone to look for her. And she was there, taking care of Sirius." Dumbledore stopped and I looked over at them. How could he have been alive and right under my nose the whole time? "When they found out they had been discovered, we decided to let it go…until it was absolutely necessary for you to find out."

"I'm so sorry I kept that from you, Lara," Virginia said. Lara finally looked up at her parents.

"You're really my…dad?"

The man whom I thought was dead, my godfather smiled. "Yes, Lara. And I'm alive, and healthy, and strong." He looked back at me. "I'm sorry I put you through everything I did, Harry." I was angry, but I loved him.

"It's okay. I understand." Sirius and I exchanged a silent understanding before Dumbledore spoke again.

"Now, our secret weapon is this. Voldemort has no idea about this prophecy of destined souls. The only thing that is on his mind is his revenge on Harry. The good thing is…we're going to let all of the women stay behind. As long as you are alive…the men have all chance. There is no way they can die."

"Professor, can't some prophecies have flaws…can't something go wrong and they die anyway?" Hermione asked. She looked frightened.

"You have a point, Hermione," Dumbledore said with a scratch of his beard. "But, it seems to me that so far the only part of the prophecies that haven't come true is the defeat of either Harry or Voldemort."

"So, you're telling me that as long as the women survive, we can't die?" I was still trying to get all of this to sink in.

"That's precisely what I'm saying." Dumbledore looked me straight in the eye. It was then I realized that he meant it. "Now, if you excuse me, I have some war planning to do." With that he stood up and walked gracefully out of the door.

"So, I still have a question…" I turned to Lara. "Not that I don't love you, because I do…" I kissed her cheek quickly. "Why is it her? I was in love with Hermione for a long time. Why did it change?"

Sirius cleared his throat, blushing slightly. "One thing you didn't know about me and your father was that we shared everything…including our wedding date. We both found out that our wives were pregnant on the same day. They shared the same due date."

"But I was born two months before Lara," I said. Then it dawned on me. "'…born as the seventh month dies…'"

"Exactly," Sirius said. "Once Lara was born, your father and I always joked that you two were going to fall madly in love with each other. Who knew that proved your destiny?" he joked.

"Actually," spoke Virginia, "that didn't do it. It was me and Lily. We knew that they would be, because their parents were destined to be best friends always. And when her hair turned red and her eyes green, I knew we were right. Nobody from either mine or Sirius' family ever had any of those colors." She wiped a tear off of her face. "Lara, dear, I am so proud of you, and I am so happy for you."

"Thanks, Mum." I smiled at Lara. Despite all of the secrets that had been kept from me…from all of us…everything seemed okay.

Several days had gone by. Everything involving Voldemort seemed to be quiet. It was the day before the 24th, and everyone's nerves seemed to be elevated. We were still at Hogwarts. Dumbledore decided that it would be a perfect place to set up the order. But that was the farthest from my mind. I was enjoying the time I had with Lara and Sirius…and getting to know the woman Sirius was in love with.

I hadn't even known that Sirius was ever married. What a shocker, huh? Anyway, the whole order was here now. Remus and Sirius were getting reacquainted, and might I say that Remus and Tonks were getting a little close. Maybe their will be a third couple in the wedding next spring? Lara and I were headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast. "So, are you enjoying staying at Hogwarts?" I asked as we walked down the final flight of stone steps.

Lara smiled at me, taking my hand. "Of course. I can see why you loved this place so much. My school wasn't nearly this big." We rounded the corner and ran into a breathless Remus.

"Remus? What's wrong?"

"Harry, take Lara back up to your room. Find the other women, especially Virginia, and get them up there. Put a lock charm on the door so no one can leave or go until you let it go. Do it quick!" Remus turned and ran into the Great Hall. I knew better than to disobey when something was wrong. Lara and I ran back to the room. Luckily, everyone was already sitting around the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room.

"Good, everyone stay here. Ron, Sirius, Neville, let's go! Remus is in a panic!" They nodded and we raced for the Front Hall. Dumbledore and everyone else who had prepared to fight off Dumbledore was already waiting in front of the door. "Professor?"

"It seems someone let slip where we were, and that we were prepared for tomorrow." Damn those spies. "Shall we?" That was Dumbledore's last words before everyone's wands were drawn and we headed out across the green grounds of Hogwarts School.


	15. The End

Ch. 15 ~ The End

It seemed like we had traveled through the dark forest forever. No one said a word, and I seemed to have lost my voice. But I was wondering how far we were going to go. Two hours must've had to pass. Suddenly Dumbledore halted and everyone followed suit. Dumbledore turned around to face everyone.

"Everyone knows the Dark Lord will have many Death Eaters after all these years. We've discussed actions to take. You all know what to do." And with that everyone went their separate ways. I hated how he was always so calm as if nothing was wrong. Didn't he realize how serious this was? "Not to worry, Mr. Potter. Remember the prophecy." It was at that point he left me alone in the middle of the forest.

I had no idea how far into the forest we had actually gone. It was eerily silent. And then there was a flash of lights all around me. The others had found the Death Eaters. I watched in silence as lights of curses flashed back and forth. I had no idea who was casting those curses, and I had no idea where anyone else was. I was only in the middle of the dark forest, left to fend for myself. And then I heard it...

"NOOOO!!!" It was Ron, he was close by. I turned quickly and found Ron lying on the ground unconscious. A hooded figure stood behind him, wand out and a smile on his face. Voldemort.

"Ron!" I ran to him and dropped to the ground. I placed a hand on his neck. There was still a pulse. "Remember the prophecy," rang Dumbledore's voice in my head. Ron would be fine so long as the girls were safe.

"Well, we meet again, Mr. Potter." He was disgustingly happy.

"So we do." I pulled my wand out slowly.

"I have many more followers. Your 'friends' have no chance."

"So you say." Let's get on with it. I was ready.

"Today the prophecy is fulfilled. And you will be the one to die." I laughed as my broom came flying towards me. He began a curse as I jumped off the ground and my broom took me above the trees. Another light from his wand came flying my direction. I was too high to actually hear what curses he was casting at me, but I knew better than to get in the way of the beams. From here I had a good view of the castle. It was very far away, but it was dark. The girls were well hidden.

"POTTER!!!" I laughed. He was getting angry. I was flying in circles above where I had left him. Then it happened. Voldemort came flying out of the trees. I flew off as fast as my Firebolt would carry me. He was not too far behind me. This was a crucial moment. I had to make a decision whether to use a forbidden curse or not. The Ministry couldn't get me in trouble for it, and in no way could they get me for murder. It would be self defense. But I would only do it once, and if I missed it could cost me my life.

Now was not the time to be stalling. I would use the killing curse. Now my only concern was correct aim. My face was beginning to burn from the cold fast air. The last time I flew this fast I was racing Malfoy for the Snitch during my last Hogwarts Quidditch game. My mind had wandered to the castle. Was Lara safe? Would I see her again? No! I couldn't think these thoughts! I had to stay focused. I had to kill the man who killed my parents and deprived me of the proper childhood I never had. I nodded at my thoughts. It was time. "This is for you, Mum and Dad......"

"Harry...Harry, wake up, love." My head pounded. I had never felt so sick in my life. I slowly opened my eyes to see many familiar faces hovering over me. "Oh thank God you're all right!"

I coughed as Lara hugged me tightly. "I love you, too, but please don't choke me." Everyone around me laughed. I breathed in the familiar smell of Hogwarts' hospital wing. "What happened?"

Nobody spoke as Dumbledore walked in. "I see young Harry is finally awake." I smiled, sitting up. "You gave everyone quite a scare, Mr. Potter. You've been out for nearly four months." I was? No way! "The good news is, Tom Riddle, or better known as Lord Voldemort, is dead." He is?

"What happened?" I repeated.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Everyone stopped fighting when they saw the two of you in the air. You are still a magnificent flyer. And you will always be the only one who could out-fly Voldemort on a broom; and he used pure magic alone." Great, another thing to be famous for. "You showed great courage. Just as he cast the Cruciatus curse at you, you cast the Avada Kedavra. Not a good mix and brilliant for you."

"I don't understand."

"When two wizards are in ownership of a wand with the same core, as was yours, certain curses backfire upon the wizard who spoke first. You spoke a fraction of a second later than he, which caused his curse to ultimately collide with yours." I blinked. My head was pounding and I didn't have the energy to keep up with Dumbledore language. "In simple terms, your curse pushed his back to him. In other words...he tortured himself before you killed him."

I took in a deep breath. It was over for now. It would take some time for the Death Eaters to get a new leader. My guess it would be one of the Malfoys. For now I would enjoy life and worry about crossing that road when I got there. The prophecy was finally fulfilled, and I couldn't help but smile.

A/N: Okay, yeah, I know! I know! It took forever to get here! I am soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo sorry. I've been so caught up in the new term at school and some other projects....but it's here! The final chappie!!!! Okay, there will be an epilogue too....I wasn't going to tell, but I want to be sure it gets read too. Okay, please read and review. What did you think?


	16. Epilogue A New Beginning

Epilogue ~ A New Beginning

"Harry! Let's go! Come on! We're going to be late!"

I shook my head at Ron's yelling from downstairs. He had been driving me crazy all morning. "Let me ask you something, Ron! How can we be late if we're apparating to Hogwarts?!"

"I don't know! But please, let's go!"

I chuckled to myself as I walked out of the bathroom and down the stairs. "I think someone's nervous."

"Why? Is it that obvious?"

I nodded with a laugh. "Yeah, your shoes are on the wrong feet, mate…"

Ron blushed and threw himself on the couch. "What if we fall on our faces?"

"Won't happen."

"How do you know?"

"'Cause all we have to do is stand there."

Ron looked as though he was contemplating this thought. When he finished his shoes, he said, "But we could not knowingly lock our knees and faint."

I chuckled. "We've drunken anti-fainting potion. Look, Ron, nothing is going to happen. Let's go." Ron swallowed hard, trying his best not to look nervous. He was failing horribly. I, on the other hand, was probably just as nervous, but I was evidently hiding it well. Ron and I checked the house for anything we might've forgotten and then we apparated to the front gate of Hogwarts. There were brooms and portkeys everywhere. There must have been at least 500 people here on the grounds. The birds were joining us with song as well, and Ron and I began to walk up to the school.

I looked up at it. It still amazed me how magnificent it looked from a distance. Of course, no muggles could see it, but if they could, I'm sure they'd say the same thing. As Ron and I got closer, we heard a huge crowd of conversation somewhere around the lake. "Well, this is it. We can't go back now." I nodded at Ron as he pointed out the fact that the girls were inside.

"That's right, we can't." We walked around the castle in silence and made our way to the many people waiting for us to show up. Okay, so we were late. They weren't going to start without us.

"Oh my! You're finally here! We thought you got lost!" Molly ran up to us and hugged us both quickly. "We've been so worried about you!"

"Mum, please." Ron straightened his jacket.

"Sorry, dear." She led us up to the front of the crowd to an archway by the lake. Everyone fell silent as we walked through the middle of the seats. Prof. Dumbledore was sitting near the front row, and he nodded with a grin at me and Ron. I was glad he was here for me. When I lost Sirius, Remus and Dumbledore were the closest I had to a father figure in my life. Of course I had Sirius back now, but he wasn't here yet. Remus was standing in the groomsmen spot with a grin.

He patted us on the back as we took our places on the right side of him. "Good going, boys. What a way to be late."

"Very funny." Ron blushed. Suddenly my stomach dropped as the minister came up to the arch and the wedding party began walking down the grounds. Ginny was there of course. She looked wonderful. The rest was a blur, because I caught my first glimpse of the brides. Hermione looked beautiful, of course. Pregnant, but beautiful.

And then I saw Lara. Her face was somewhat hidden behind a veil. The veil was held on by a small tiara. My princess. Her gown was strapless, and the skirt filled with patterned roses and pearls. She looked happy behind that veil, and it made me feel good to know it was because of me. Then the minister began to speak.

"We are here to celebrate a new beginning for our two young couples. Ron and Hermione. Harry and Lara. You have all been through your share of hard times, but today you will begin a whole new beginning. You've asked me to keep this brief, and I promised I would. Let's begin with Ron and Hermione." The minister turned to face Hermione. "Who gives this woman to marry this man?"

Mr. Granger cleared his throat, a single tear falling down his face. "Her mother and I do, sir." The minister nodded with a smile as Hermione hugged her dad. She then took Ron's hand and they walked up to the archway.

"Now then," the minister turned to face Lara, "who gives this woman to marry this man?"

I grinned at Sirius, his cheeks red as cherries. No one knew that he was married, and no one knew that he was free until this moment, other than his close friends of course. He cleared his throat and whispered, "Her mother and I do." There was a gasp from the audience as Remus gave Lara's hand to me and made his place next to Remus. "That sucked," he said as Remus tried not to laugh.

I took Lara's hand carefully and gave her a smile. I could tell she was trying not to cry, which only made me want to start. Deep breath. I turned and we walked up next to Ron and Hermione and turned back to the audience. The minister stood in front of us. We listened as Ron and Hermione exchanged the vows they had written for each other, and then it was my turn. I turned to Lara and smiled. "Lara, sometimes I feel like we've known each other our whole lives. And let's face it, mine hasn't exactly been perfect. The point is it doesn't matter now, because as bad as my life was before, that's how good it's going to become. I wouldn't share it with anyone else. I remember the first time I fell in love with you. I remember looking you in the eyes, and you reminded me so much of the mother I never knew. That only intrigued me more. I promise to stay with you in all situations, good or bad. I will support you and love you. I will even die for you, just as my parents died for each other, and for me. I know our love can be just as strong as theirs was, and will always be. I love you."

Once I had that out of the way, the rest was a breeze. We exchanged rings, lit candles, and shared our first kiss. My heart was beating so fast I thought it might jump out, but only from pure love and excitement of my new life. I had my two best friends; I had a great career about to start at Hogwarts; I had my godfather, Remus; I had my best friend and now my father, Sirius; and I had the love of my life. Life was just too good to be true, and I was going to hang onto that as long as possible. Someday it might all slip from my fingers.


End file.
